Zero no Tsukaima: The Legend of Zero
by deathhound7
Summary: After defeating the ancient dragon and getting married, Louise is finally able to reunite Saito with his parents. As they build a happy life together in Tristiania, a massive war is brewing in Halkeginia.
1. Chapter 1: Homecoming

**Zero no Tsukaima:**  
**The Legend of Zero**

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Chapter 1: **_Homecoming_**

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* * *

"These buildings, they're taller than I had imagined." Louise's eyes were brightly glued to the window next to her seat, her small mouth grinning wide in awe as tall mirrored towers and billboards spanned across her field of vision. Saito's lips curled into a faint smile as he looked at her. Just out of the corner of her eye, Louise caught him staring at her and blushed. "W-what are you smiling about?"

"You're cute," he said. Louise was a short girl with a pretty face and pink hair. Despite her beauty, she didn't posses the development or sex appeal of other young women her age. Her short stature and small bust size occasionally caused people to confuse her for a child, or at least younger than a girl in her late teens.

"Stupid dog," Louise muttered. She tilted her nose up and furrowed her brow in disgust. She quickly glanced out of the corner of her eye to make sure Saito was still looking at her.

Saito hung his arm around her and brought her closer to him. She resisted at first, but then rested her head on his shoulder and took another bite out of her crepe. The two of them had spent the first half of the day walking through Tokyo's business district. He had taken her to arcades, shopping malls, and food stands. He brought some gold ecus that he was able to convert into cash. It was a sizable amount, but even so, Louise easily blew through most of it with the amount of clothing and jewelry she had bought.

They were both exhausted. It'd been a long day, and Saito looked as if he was drifting in and out of sleep. Louise took his hand and played with the band around his finger. It matched one that Louise wore on her own hand, one she'd been wearing for less than a week.

"Saito?" Louise tried to get Saito's attention, but he was becoming increasingly unaware of his surroundings. "Hey Saito!" Again, he didn't respond. Louise frowned, then she grabbed his nose and twisted.

Louise hadn't given Saito any time to phase through his grogginess. Like splashing cold water on a drunk, Saito was instantly awake and apparently much more sober in mind than he was two seconds ago. "Aaah! Louise, what the hell do you think your doing?!"

"A familiar should listen when his master is speaking to him!" Louise snapped at Saito. Even after everything they'd been through, In Louise's eyes, Saito was still her familiar-her servant, and she wasn't going to let a little thing like marriage relinquish her dominion over him. "Humph!" Louise crossed her arms over her chest and faced the other way in indignation. After a long pause, Louise finally swallowed her pride and asked him the question that had been bothering her throughout the trip. "Are you nervous?"

Saito seemed to be still reeling from the trauma she had inflicted to his nose, waiting for the pain to wane to a degree that he finally registered her question. He was still rubbing his noise as he replied. "Nervous? Yeah, I suppose so. I haven't seen them in over a year, they haven't had an explanation as to why I suddenly disappeared. To be honest, I'm not sure what I'm going to say to my mom."

Louise looked downward and bit her lip. "She must have been worried this whole time." It'd been over a year since Saito had fallen out of the sky, and into Louise's world. Back then, she couldn't have been any more devastated. The summon servant ceremony was a chance for her to finally show her peers that the third born of the Valliere family was not deserving of the nickname 'Zero Louise'. She had fantasized about summoning something magnificent, like a dragon or a griffin. Instead she had summoned an ordinary teenage boy, a commoner. It was the most degrading humiliation she had ever endured up to that point.

Louise thought about everything that had happened, everything they had been through. Louise, who was thoroughly unskilled in all of the elements, had turned out to be a void mage. She was among a handful people in Halkegina who could use the legendary element-void, thought by many to be a mere myth. Because of this power, she and Saito had found themselves fighting against golems, gargoyles, and against a nefarious king who would have used her powers to commit mass murder.

Every single time she had come close to dying, Saito was there to save her. He wasn't what she expected or wanted, a mere commoner with no manners or common sense. He was just a familiar, but ran off and did things on his own, and worse still, payed far too much attention to other girls. Somehow, somewhere down the line, Louise started needing him, expecting him to always be around. She even came to love him.

But the fact that he stood by her side, meant that there was a family somewhere in the universe that had lost him without any explanation of why. It was because Louise took him from them. The thought racked Louise's heart with guilt.

A small hint of wetness welled up in Louise's eyes. Saito's lips curled into a coy half-smile as he said, "Of course I've missed my mom and dad, and I'm sure they've missed me. But, if I were a parent, I think I'd want my kids to be happy, and I'm happiest when I'm with you. As tears started to streak down her face, Saito bent down and closed the distance between them.

* * *

**...**

* * *

Louise was jolted awake as the train came to a screeching halt. "Looks like this is our stop," Saito said. Before Louise could fully open her eyes, Saito was pulling her out of her seat. "It should take about fifteen minutes to walk from here to my old house," he said.

"I'm tired of walking, why don't you just go buy a horse?" She rubbed her eyes and let out a loud yawn. "I'll wait here until you return."

"People don't ride horses in Tokyo, besides, you've spent just about every dime I have."

Louise shot him a sharp, disapproving glare. "You complain too much. Whining over a thin purse when you are still wealthy back at home, isn't it better that you treat your master every once in a while? Really, I've been too good to you lately and your starting to get ahead of yourself!"

"Oh, uh, I'm not complaining," he said. "I'm just stating the truth of our situation. We aren't in a position to be spending much more. It was fun though, really. Actually, I'm really looking forward to seeing you in that dress."

Louise's scowl melted into a tender, bashful smile.

The two of them walked away from the train station and started heading down the sidewalk. The road was really busy this time of day, and several times Saito had to prevent Louise from walking out in the middle of the street. She still wasn't used to dealing with the bustling traffic of Tokyo's roadways. "Geez, your going to get us both killed!"

"Shut up, and stop being so dramatic. I know what I'm doing!"

After about twenty minutes and plenty of complaining from Louise, they were in Saito's neighborhood. Louise looked at the rows of houses that lined the streets. This really was a different world. The streets still looked like streets, homes still looked like homes, but other than that, nothing could be mistaken as something belonging to Halkegina. Compared to the tall towers that dominated the previous section of the city, the houses were much more reminiscent of a village like Tarbes, except it looked nothing like Tarbes. The architecture was entirely alien, the streets were paved in solid stone, and even the trees were somehow different from any species she was familiar with. "We really aren't in Halkegenia any more" she said in astonishment.

Louise was having the same disorienting experience Saito must have had when he suddenly appeared at the Tristain Academy of Magic. "You'll get used to it," he said. Louise walked with Saito with her arm linked with his.

Louise smiled at Saito, his face was stuck in a state of astonishment. She looked forward to see what he was staring at. A tall, beautiful girl with long black hair and an ample bosom was walking towards them. Upon catching sight of Saito and Louise, the girl began to trod cheerfully. The girl's breasts bounced up and down as she ran towards them, something Saito didn't seem to fail to notice. Louise frowned and stared at Saito threateningly.

"Saito?, Hiraga Saito?! Is that really you?" The girl stood there for a second in awe, then smiled as she ran after him. In an instant, she tackled him to the ground. "It's really you! Where have you been? What happened? Why didn't you call?" The girl had Saito pinned to the ground, asking him a number of rapid fire questions. A surge of rage flowed through Louise's veins. She couldn't help but feel that this overly cheerful girl must be the girlfriend Saito left behind. Now that they're reunited, she was all over him, forcefully tackling him to the ground and embracing him. The girl's large breasts were pressed into Saito's face.

Blood-lust prompted Louise to raise her wand up, the tip slightly glowing. Saito, of all people, must have known full well what was about to happen. Louise was prone to venting her rage through explosive magical attacks, usually aimed at him. Saito immediately jumped up to stop her. "No Louise, you can't! not here! you can't blow up here!" Louise responded to his pleas by kicking him in his nether regions. Saito crumpled to his knees, holding his abused jewels.

Louise's eyes pierced through the dark shadows cast by her hair. "S-S-SAITO! W-Who is this?! Is she your girlfriend? D-d-did you have a girlfriend back home and forget to tell your WIFE?!" Before Saito could answer, she quickly kicked him in the crotch again.

"No . . Louise... misunderstanding. . ." Saito's voice gave out as he groined in pain. "Louise, this is Makoto. Makoto, meet . . . my wife, Louise."

Makoto looked at Saito, and then at Louise. She stood dumbfounded for a few seconds, blinked a couple times, and then looked as if she was getting ready to explode with excitement. "You got married!? Makoto squealed. "I'm so happy for you!" As Saito was still trying to get to his feet, Makoto pounced on both Saito and Louise and pulled them into an aggressive hug "When was it? Is she pregnant? Are you planning on having a baby? Were there a lot of people there?"

Makoto relinquished the death grip she had on the newly weds and her bubbly demeanor subsided. "Wait a minute, aren't you a little young to get married, and, WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN! It's been over a year. They sent out search parties; your parents have been worried like crazy!"

"I know"

"Then why . . . "

"It's a long story," Saito said. "Listen, Makoto, it was great seeing you again, but Id better show my face to my mother before the sun goes down. I have a lot of explaining to do, and not much time. If you would, I'd like to keep this under the radar. I don't have time to explain, but things are complicated as it is without getting other people involved, it's going to be hard enough explaining this to my parents."

Makoto looked confused, but then smiled cheerfully and nodded."I understand. Well, take care. It was nice meeting you, Louise!"

Louise, remembering her aristocratic pride, and in total contrast to her earlier brutality, gave Makato a very dignified curtsy. She then turned around and shot a piercing glare at Saito. Her face was red with anger and she gave off an almost demonic aura. She waited until Makoto was out of earshot, then lashed out at Saito. "So, are you going to explain to me who that was and why she was all over you, or not!"

"She's just a friend!" he said nervously, holding out his hands to defend himself from another attack. "You've got the wrong idea. She's just like that, and besides, she's dating a friend of mine!"

Louise was still angry, but Saito's explanation sounded reasonable enough, at least for the time being.

* * *

**...**

* * *

Louise followed Saito to a house at the end of the street. It wasn't big, but it was of decent size compared to all the others on the block. Saito rang the doorbell and they both waited. A woman that looked to be in her late-thirties opened the door. She had dark circles over her eyes and her hair was disheveled. She looked like she hadn't slept in quite a while. A deafening silence dominated the air. The woman stood there, frozen. She stared at Saito for what seemed like an eternity.

"H-hello Mom, sorry I haven't phoned home." Saito apparently couldn't find anything else to say. The middle-aged woman stood there for a while without blinking, she looked as if she wanted to speak, but couldn't let out any words.

"S-Saito?" She put both hands over her mouth and started crying profusely. She fell to her knees. Saito ran over to catch her. His mother buried her face into his chest, lightly hitting him with her fists. "I thought . . . I thought you were dead!" she said. As Saito wrapped his arms around his mother, Louise thought that he looked like a father consoling his child.

"I thought I would never see you again! Why wouldn't you call? Why wouldn't you let us know you were okay?" Her voice was starting to crack.

"I'm sorry, mom." His eyes began to water. Louise watched as Saito held his mother, both of them were crying. Louise was so transfixed by the scene that she hadn't realized that tears were flowing down her own face. They stayed like this for a while, no one spoke. After Mrs. Hiraga had soaked the sleeve of Saito's shirt, she finally looked up at Louise, as if she was just now noticing her.

"Oh, you must be . . . Saito's girlfriend?" she said, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"Well, um . . . something like that. It's sort of a long story."

"Well, why are we all out here for?" Mrs. Hiraga's eyes were still wet as she smiled, she was more composed than she had been moments before. "Come inside and tell me all about it." Mrs. Hiraga stood up and held the door open as she motioned for for Louise to come inside.

Louise walked into the house and sat next to Saito on his parent's Sofa. The room wasn't very big. It wasn't nearly as luxurious or grand as what Louise was accustomed to, but the decor and furnishings were much nicer than what you would expect of a plebeian family. Portraits on the wall depicted members of the Hiraga family, several of them were of Saito at different ages. "Wait here just a moment," Mrs. Hiraga said as she left the room.

Moments later, she returned dragging in a man in his early forties. His eyes and jet black hair were very reminiscent of both Saito and his mother. It was obvious that this was Saito's father. Louise thought that this man must be what Saito would look like later on in life. Despite being much older, he still looked very fit. In many ways he was a slightly taller, slightly bulkier version of his boyish, teenage son.

"Hanae, what's so important that you have to-" The man stared at Saito with his mouth gaping wide open.

The first expression on Mr. Hiraga's face was shock, the second was outrage. Louise thought the man was going to explode.

"You wanna tell me just where the hell you've been all this time, and who this is? Have you no heart, Saito? We thought you died!"

Hanae turned towards her husband and scolded him. "Calm down, Eiji! Let the boy explain himself."

"But-"

"We see our son for the first time, in a long time, and the first thing you do is start to yell at him? You should be ashamed of yourself!"

Eiji scratched his head and grumbled to himself. He took in a deep breath and Sighed. "Saito, there's not a day that's gone by that I didn't grieve for you, not at day has gone by that I didn't worry or wonder what had happened. I've had to watch your mother fall apart, your disapearance has affected every facet of our lives.

"I can't even begin to tell you how much of a relief it is to see you sitting there alive and well, but could you please explain to us what the heck is going on with you?!"

Louise immediately stood up. "I-I-I'm deeply sorry. It's not Saito's fault, Mr. Hiraga. It is mine. I summoned him to my world. My name is Louise Françoise Le Blanc de La Val-" Louise stopped herself. She had been a Vallière up until a week ago, then she married Saito. "I'm sorry, my name is Louise Françoise Le Blanc de Hiraga de Ornielle, daughter to Duke De La Valliere and I am your son's . . . I'm Saito's wife!"

Saito's parents shot each other quick glances of disbelief before looking back at Saito and Louise. They were both speechless. This girl was telling them that she was now their daughter-in-law, that she and that their son were married. Once more, this foreign girl who somehow speaks perfect Japanese had introduced herself as the daughter of a duke. Neither one could tell if this was a joke, or if she was serious. Had their son really run off to another country and got married? Could this really be the daughter of some sort of nobility, and did such things as dukes and nobility still exist somewhere in the modern world?

Both of Saito's parents sat and stared in astonishment as Saito explained about Halkeginia, about mages, the princess, his becoming a Knight, and about the fact that he was now married to Louise. Saito conveniently left out the war in Albion, his role as Gandalfr, or the numerous times that he and Louise had been put into danger. At first neither his mother, nor his father said a word. Both seemed to still be trying to process what their son was telling them. Mr Hiraga's eyes softened as he scratched at the hairs on his chin. He looked as if he was deep in contemplation.

"Son. . . tell us the truth. Whatever happened, whatever the reason, it doesn't matter. We're just glad your safe and back home."

Saito looked at Louise and shrugged his shoulders. "That is the truth, this is why I've been gone all this time."

"Son, your talking nonsense. So you ran away and got married, so what? We've all done stupid things in our youth. There's no need to spin this tale of a fantasy-land straight out of an anime."

"I'm not lying dad, it's the truth!"

"You joined a gang, didn't you? No, wait, that doesn't make sense." Mr. Hiraga was muttering to himself and then looked as if an idea crossed his mind that made him gnash his teeth together. "You've been sexually abused by a pervert all this time, and are too ashamed to tell us about it! You poor kids have been brainwashed by the sicko who abused, haven't you? I swear on your grandmother's grave I'll kill the bastard!"

Saito and Louise were too stunned by Mr. Hiraga's theatrics and wild conclusions to muster anything that would resemble coherent thought or words.

"Partner would at least be getting some action if that were the case." The voice seemed to come out of nowhere, speaking with a tone of irreverence and crass.

Eiji looked around. "Who said that?"

"Are your ears going bad, old man? Hah! Luckily I don't have that problem, I don't have ears!"

Hanae's eyes were wide with shock as she pointed at the glowing glyphs on Saito's hand. "Saito! D-did your hand just speak?"

"Mom, Dad" Saito said, " this is Derflinger." Louise shook her head as she watched a situation that was quickly turning into a farce. On top of everything else, they would have to explain to them about a talking sword that _isn't_ a sword anymore but an entity living in the runes on Saito's hand. Before Louise even got a chance to interject into the conversation, Saito's mom fainted.

Saito quickly ran off into the kitchen, soon he was back with a cup of cold water. His dad helped move his mother on to the sofa. "Here mom, drink this." Saito propped her head up and and moved the straw towards her mouth. Neither Eiji, nor Hanae, had any reason now to doubt Saito's story.

"So all that stuff about magic, it's really true, isn't it?" She said, "And you were really stuck in another world?"

"I'm sorry about that," Louise said meekly. "I didn't know this was going to happen when I cast the summon spell. Once he appeared in our world, I was unable to send him back. I've only recently gained the power to traverse between our worlds using the 'world door' spell."

Hanae had gone from disbelief, to fascination. "So when you talk about traversing between our worlds, you mean . . ."

Here, I'll show you!" Louise held out her wand and began to chant. The stem glowed, first dimly, then it got brighter until finally it seemed to produce arcs of neon blue. Louise finished chanting and suddenly a small disk appeared in front of them. It looked like a mirror, but instead of showing the reflection of the Hiraga residence, the room on the other side stood as a complete contrast. It was luxurious and spacious with elaborate, eloquent wall designs and finely crafted furnishings.

Eiji reached out to touch the mirror-like object that floated in front of them. His hand went into it, and could not be seen from the other side. "Amazing!" he said.

A maid with medium-length black hair walked past, she was apparently absorbed in the task of dusting. The young woman was surprised to see Louise, Saito, and the Hiragas all staring at her. She turned around and yelled in Louise's face.

"Miss Valliere!"

"It's not Valliere, it's Mrs. Hiraga to you!" Saito's personal maid, and Louise had a long-standing rivalry for Saito's affection. Though Saito was Louise's familiar, and he had fallen in love with her a long time ago, the maid continued to flirt with him and agitate Louise. Louise wasn't about to let her get away with using her family name.

"But Mrs. Valliere," Siesta said, completely disregarding Louise's orders, "It's been so little time since the wedding, and I am so used to your previous title."

"Then call me Louise."

"Waah?!" Siesta looked at Louise as if she had just lost her sanity. It was completely out of character for Louise to ask a servant, especially Siesta, to call her by her given name. "B-but, miss Vallie-" Louis grew tired of speaking with her and closed the portal.

"Who was that?" Hanae said.

Louise quickly melted her cold, harsh expression and turned to face the Hiragas. "That was Siesta, the maid of the De Ornielles estate."

"And that must be a portal!" Hanae said. "That was the 'other world' you were talking about on the other side, wasn't it? So, that's how you kids came back here."

"That's right." Louise looked down at the floor and fidgeted. "You have to know, when I cast the summon servant spell, I had no idea that Saito would be called. Usually it's some sort of beast, summoning a human is entirely unprecedented." Having seen how much Saito's disapearance had affected this family, was too much for Louise to bear.

Hanae put her hands on Louise's shoulders and smiled at her warmly. "Hey kiddo, it's not like you meant for any of this to happen. You've got nothing to apologize to any of us over. More importantly," Hanae looked over at her son. "are you happy?"

Saito thought for a moment. He'd been through hell and back to save a world he wasn't born into, and had been forced to do the bidding of a thankless master who treated him no better than a dog. Louise was spoiled, haughty, short-tempered, violent, more trouble than he thought he could handle at times-and he loved her more than anyone else in the world. "More than I've ever been in my life," he said.

"Then this girl has my thanks."

Louise's cheeks turned the same shade of pink as her hair.

Mrs Hiraga sat up. "Well, Your both probably exhausted from a trip across the universe, and it's about time for dinner."

* * *

**...**

* * *

Louise sat with Saito and his father at a table in their small dining room. Saito's mother was in the kitchen. Saito and his father were both chatting away. The anger that Mr. Hiraga had shown earlier had vanished, leaving all but his usual jovial personality. Saito's father talked about work. Saito went on and on about Colbert and his inventions, and how they had recovered a Zero fighter, which seemed to really astonish Mr. Hiraga.

"How did you come across an A6M Zero in this other world anyway?" Eiji took a sip of his coffee as he spoke to his son. Louise thought it was strange that this man was drinking coffee in the evening.

"It seems I'm not the only person or thing to be summoned in that world." Saito said.

"This Colbert, it sound's like he's very intelligent, If he was able to repair and maintain something like that, without having any experience with that kind of technology. I think I'd like to meet this guy."

"Actually, he's always said that he'd like to see my world some day."

"If he's been good to you, then he's welcome here."

Louise couldn't help but compare her own family. She was close to her second eldest sister, Cattleya and her father spoiled her whenever he could, but both her parents were often busy managing their estate, and with their involvement in state affairs, there really wasn't much time to spend with one another. Meals were cooked by a team of highly skilled chefs and attendants answered every need of the three Valliere sisters. She had grown up in an environment where closeness in familial bonding took a backseat to the training and conditioning one needs to display the grace, elegance, and dignity of a proper noble.

Mrs Hiraga came out from the kitchen carrying steaming pots of rice and soup. The smell was absolutely intoxicating. Louise hadn't realized just how hungry she was until she smelled the food. There were no forks, knives, or spoons to speak of. In the place of silverware, lay two wooden sticks. Louise looked at Saito to see how he was eating his meal. He picked up both sticks with one hand. and used them to pick up small clumps of rice. Louise tried the same but failed miserably each time. Louise's face turned red with embarrassment as she clumsily tried to hold the chopsticks in place. In frustration she thought about using her hands, but then cursed herself for thinking of something so un-lady-like.

"Here," Saito said. "you hold them like this." He gently coaxed her fingers into the correct position. Louise smiled sheepishly and continued to eat her food. She thought Saito seemed happier than he had in a long time. No doubt, he was glad to be back home eating with his family, the first time in over a year that he had been able to do so. Louise was glad that not only has she finally returned her familiar home, but she could be here with him.

"So, Louise," Ms Hiraga said, "How is it that you know Japanese? Did Saito teach you?"

"Japanese?"

"It's the language of this country." Saito said.

The runes on Saito shone as Delfringer decided to put he own two cents into the conversation. "It's the properties of void"

"The properties of void?" Saito spat rice as he spoke, his words nearly incoherent.

"Must you repeat everything I say?" I don't remember much, but it has something to do with how you both used that world door to come into this strange place. I'd be inconvenient for a familiar to misunderstand it's master, so void powers are naturally enchanted with such properties."

Both of Saito's parents were fascinated with the conversation Saito was having with his hand. Louise had recalled the silence spell that had malfunctioned and caused Saito to be able to both understand words, and have his words understood in her world. Did the spell react this way because she was a void mage? Louise quickly lost interest and continued to greedily shove rice into her mouth.

As she was nearly finished with her meal Louise felt the hem of her skirt being pulled up. She quickly darted her eyes at Saito, giving him a cold death glare, but Saito kept eating and acting like nothing was going on. He steadily held a conversation with his mother without skipping a beat. Louise kept trying to swat his hand away, and even tried pinching him; apparently he had built up a high tolerance for pain.

Louise hadn't said anything to him in spite, or done anything violent since they arrived at his family's home. It must have finally dawned on Saito that Louise was trying to maintain appearances. She was acting nicer than usual, and wouldn't do anything that might upset either one of Saito's parents. Louise watched a devilish smile curl on Saito's face as he completely took advantage of the situation.

"Louise would you like some more miso soup?"

"Y-y-y-y-y-yes-s-s p-p-pl-please." Louise stuttered profusely while trying to maintain an awkward smile on her face. She looked over at Saito again, her eyes were telling him to cut it out, but he persisted. Louise hands shook as she brought the bowl to her mouth and drank the soup. It took all her effort and concentration to not spill it. Saito still wouldn't quit teasing her.

Somehow Saito managed to conceal his arm movements. Louise was at her limit. Her face was starting to turn a bright shade of red, and she seemed to be unaware of the fact that she was eating her chopsticks.

* * *

**...**

* * *

"What's with him?" Louise sat in front of a mirror in Saito's room, combing her hair and talking to her own reflection. Out of fear of mortal embarrassment and an unexplainable awkward situation, Louise had let Saito do lewd things to her at the dinner table. "It's not like I wanted him to do that!" she said. "Well, maybe it wasn't all that bad, but he went too far!"

After dinner, Louise had quickly excused herself and retired to Saito's room. His parent's didn't seem to have a problem with them sleeping in the same bed, considering that they were both, in actuality, husband and wife. Louise changed into her nightgown and dove face-first into a pillow. She was just glad the whole thing went unnoticed by Saito's parents.

As she lay there in Saito's bed, contemplating the actions of her familiar, Louise was overloaded with embarrassment and anger. She quickly thought of ways to make Saito pay for this infraction on her dignity.

Louise removed her panties and was in the middle of changing into another pair, but then she stopped. How would Saito react if he were to walk in and find her just as she was? Thoughts of seducing and teasing Saito poured into her head. If she did that, she was sure that Saito wouldn't be able control himself. She began to fantasize about Saito coming into the room and pushing her onto the bed. Steam came out of Louise's ears as her brain overloaded and crashed.

She snapped herself back to reality for a brief moment. "No, that wouldn't be right, we've only been married for a week. Even three months would be too short a time!" Despite her own protests, Louise continued to entertain the fantasies. Just as she was about to become lost in her thoughts, she noticed a corner of what seemed to be a thin book sticking out from under the mattress.

Louise lifted the mattress and pulled out a stack of paper booklets with scantily clad women on the covers. These obviously belonged to that perverted mutt. Louise thumbed through the magazines, many of the women were naked. Every single woman in those magazines had large breasts. Saito had lied to her time and time again, told her that he preferred small breasts, that he preferred Louise. She shook with rage.

* * *

** -oOo-**

* * *

"Your going back? But this is your home!" Hanae said, quickly putting away the rest of the dishes. "You've been stuck in that other world for so long, and your talking about going back now?"

"I know, but I got a life there now, Mom." Saito still sat at the dinner table, talking to his mother. Eiji had gone off to the living room to catch the evening news, and Louise had gone to bed earlier. Saito hadn't realized how much time had gone past, but the sky had already grew dark.

"You've got a life here."

"I'm eighteen years old, do you really want Louise and I hanging around here, mooching off of you?"

"Of course."

"I've got my own place, and believe or not, I've managed to become prosperous - enough to take care of you and dad." Saito tried not to go into too much detail, her head would explode if he told her that he had his own mansion and territory.

"We don't need to be taken care of, but I see what you mean. It's just that I finally get to see you again, and your going to take off on me."

"Louise's life is there, her parents, her school; not only that, but I have a future in Halkeginia. You and I both know that even if I had finished high-school, I wouldn't have gotten into a good college. It's not going to be for long. With Louise's powers, I'll be able to visit often. It'll be no different from getting an apartment here in Tokyo."

"I don't think I want you to move out at all. I get it, your all grown up now. You just better make good on your promise to visit often."

Saito hugged his mother and went up the stairs and towards his old room.

Opening the door, Saito could see that not much had changed since he had last left. Model aircraft and tanks that he constructed years ago sat on the dresser and book shelf. His desk was organized and free of dust. Everything looked as if the room was cleaned on a regular basis, but otherwise left untouched since he left.

Louise lay on the bed with her head resting on her arm. She wore a translucent night gown with her hair draped across the bed. It was a scene that would have stopped him in his tracks not long ago, but now no longer phased him. Even before they became romantically involved, Saito's status as her familiar and the fact that their was only one bed in her dorm necessitated both of them sleeping in the same bed. He had long since gotten used to seeing her like this.

Saito gulped down a swelling growth of nervousness that suddenly overcame him. She was looking at him as if she was a leopard about to go in for the kill. It was times like these where he couldn't tell what Louise was thinking. He was tired and needed to go to bed, but feared his life would be in danger if he got any closer to her. The next thing to come out of Louise's mouth defied all his expectations.

"I'm not wearing any panties"

All at once the hairs on the back of Saito's neck stood up. Two seconds ago, he thought she was going to murder him. Now it seemed as if she was coming on to him. "Do you know why?" she said seductively.

"N-no, I-I-I've no idea."

Suddenly Louise's face twisted into a grotesque, maddening snarl as she screamed at him. "It's so I can do this, you perverted, dumb mutt!" Louise jumped up from her position and pounced on Saito. "Choke on it!" she yelled, shoving her wet panties down his throat. She had her tiny fist thoroughly lodged into his mouth.

Saito tried to plead with his deranged wife, but her fist and wadded underwear was making it impossible to speak. Saito grabbed Louise by the arm and tried to pull her hand out of his mouth, but she was surprisingly strong. They both rolled on the floor for a while in a bitter struggle. Finally Saito seemed to get the upper hand, he hurled the both of them upwards and backed her against the bed. Saito finally managed to remove her panties from his mouth. "Louise, calm the hell down already. What the hell has gotten into you?!"

"H-how dare you make a mockery of your master!" Louise pulled out a riding crop she had set on the bed-stand earlier and started hitting him in the face with it. Saito grabbed Louise by the waist and pulled her toward him as he tried to take the riding crop from her. The hem of her nightgown was wedged between them, exposing her lower half from her stomach down to her legs. Saito wasn't sure if Louise realized how she looked to him right now, since she seemed much more interested in braining him.

"Louise, your gown . . .," Saito manged to utter as he grappled with Louise. Louise looked down at herself and turned beet red, immediately rushing to correct her disheveled nightgown. Louise's eyes met Saito's again. He had a nervous look on his face, but not for fear of bodily harm - it was the type of nervousness a man feels when near the woman he loves. Saito pushed her down onto the bed and stared at her. He could see a mixture of emotions in her eyes as her breathing grew shallow.

"I love you Louise." Saito's heart beat even faster as he brought his face closer to hers. Saito paused for a moment and stared deeply into her eyes. She turned away to avert his gaze.

"Don't look at me like that!" Louise said shyly. Just moments ago she acted as if she was a viscous predator, now she acted as if she was the prey. "I'm still mad at you, you know."

"Uh that . . . I'm sorry, but you looked really cute like that."

"It's not that"

"Then what?"

"Are you really okay with me?"

"What are you saying all of a sudden? It has to be you, it can only be you!"

Saito kissed Louise passionately, and began lifting up her gown. Louise let out a gasp of surprise.

"Ah, I'm sorry, it's just-"

"It's okay."

Saito continued, when suddenly the door burst open and Saito's half-asleep father stood in the doorway. Saito's parents had been sleeping downstairs in the living room with the TV blaring. They were both sound sleepers, so Saito never imagined waking them up. "What's going on, is everyone all right?" Mr. Hiraga showed signs of slight delirium. Suddenly he came to his senses and realized the situation. Saito and his father stared at each other awkwardly as Saito hovered over Louise.

"What's all this racket? What are you yelling about, Eiji?" Mrs Hiraga said to her husband. She walked up from behind Saito's father and rubbed her eyes. She took a quick glance at the scene in front of her. "I know what it's like to be young, but don't you think you two are making just a little too much noise?" she said casually. Louise looked as if she wanted to deny the reality of the present situation, but was too stunned to come up with the words. "I've got to be at work in the morning and we'll be sleeping in the next room, please try not to wake us up." Mrs. Hiraga dragged her husband off by his ear and was gone.

Saito looked at Louise and grinned nervously. Louise smiled back at him, but with a cold, sinister look in her eyes. She planted her foot firmly into his face, threw him out of the bed, and then rolled over and went to sleep.

* * *

** -oOo-**

* * *

Louise woke up to the sound of the wind and the murmur of several hundred passengers. Her vision was still blurry, but she could make out a dark-haired girl running up to her. Louise almost didn't recognize Siesta without her maid uniform.

"Miss Valliere! Where is Mr. Saito?"

Louise looked around. She was apparently on an airship. Saito was no where to be seen.

"He went to face the Albion army alone, while you were still under the effects of the sleeping potion." Julio's strange, mis-matched eyes carried a sense of coldness and pity.

"That can't be," Siesta said, "I gave that potion to Saito, so he may live!"

"Saito, for my sake, he . . ." Without thinking a single rational thought, Louise ran across the deck, grabbing a hold of the rail. It looked as if she would jump over it and fall to her death. "Saito!, Saito!" A pair of muscular hands caught her under the arms just before she went overboard.

"Miss Louise! No! It's too late!"

Louise kicked at the air as Scarron held her back. "No, I want to be with Saito, I want to fight by his side, I don't want him to die alone!" Louise's companions stood around her and watched helplessly as she was brought to tears.

Julio watched as a small vial rolled from Louise's hands and onto the deck, she rushed over to pick it up. He could see that it had a small, glowing flower inside of it. "Eclore d'amour," he said. "The ability to know the wellbeing of one's lover regardless of distance." The flower had been one of two that Louise had bought; one for her, and one for Saito. She watched in horror as it shriveled and died.

The sky over Albion was filled with the anguished sound of Louise screaming Saito's name.

* * *

**...**

* * *

Louise cried until her mouth was dry and it hurt to swallow. She clenched her pillow tightly and soaked it in spit and tears. She rose up slowly and realized she was still in bed. A wave of relief swept over her, though the fear and heartache still lingered. It was a dream, but it really happened. It was a vivid memory that haunted her often.

She had lost him. She recalled the weeks she spent depressed and withdrawn from the world. She stopped eating, she stopped sleeping, she stopped going to class. She'd lost all hope and was ready to throw it all away until the day the eclore d'amour shone again, something that should not have been possible. Saito had returned to her. She didn't want to ever loose him again.  
Louise felt around on the bed next to her for Saito, but he wasn't there. Then she remembered. She looked over to the floor and saw Saito tossing around in his sleep. It appeared that he wasn't having a pleasant night either. He had a sheet under him and no blanket. He must have been freezing the whole night.

Louise wrapped herself, head and all in her blanket and crept next to Saito. As she threw the covers around the both of them, she could hear Saito murmuring in his sleep.

"Louise"

"I'm here."

"Louise!"

"I'm right here."

Louise placed her head against Saito's chest and held him tightly.


	2. Chapter 2: Saito and Louise

Chapter 2_: __**Saito and Louise**_

* * *

- 0 -

* * *

Saito got down on one knee and used the hilt of the blade to prop himself up. He needed to rest, if only for a few seconds.

This wasn't his world, he wasn't born here. He had no obligation to the Queen, or the fate of Tristania. Yet he was here, fighting a battle that wasn't his own.

"Why do I have to deal with this?"

"It's for the woman you love, is it not?" Delfringer replied.

"Right."

He was doing this because he was in love, even though he wasn't entirely sure that she loved him back, even though she was cruel, even though she was hot-tempered, even though she was ill-mannered and even though she was spoiled.

Louise had summoned Saito to this world as her familiar, her personal servant, her slave. She made him do her laundry, dress her, and clean her dorm. Both to his delight and chagrin, Louise didn't seem to mind him seeing her naked, but only because she didn't view him as a man. He was nothing more than a dog in her eyes, and she made sure he knew that on a regular basis.

How did he end up falling in love with such a girl? She was sadistic; she often beat him and seemed to enjoy it. Most of time time it was because of his interactions with other women. Saito once accused her of being jealous, but a foot planted on his face had reassured him that he was wrong. From then on, he was assured that she simply wanted to monopolize him, to dominate him.

"Intruder!"

The squad leaders had managed to get a hold of the situation and of their men. The mages were now making a precise, organized effort to stop Saito. Battle-mages rained fire along his path. Their attacks were quick, but he was quicker. The stream of fire missed Saito completely and tore a path of destruction behind him.

Being a familiar had it's usefulness. As Gandalfr, Saito was afforded superhuman speed and strength any time he picked up a weapon. Battle-mages fell in quick succession before they could draw their wands.

Fatigue was starting to overcome Saito, he had been fighting for a quite a while and over a hundred men lay at his feet. He'd fared far better than any man could hope to for, but the whole of the army was rumored to number around seventy-thousand. Even with his familiar powers, Saito wouldn't be coming out of this alive.

The sky grew bright and the air instantly heated up as a massive fireball seemed to come at Saito out of nowhere. He didn't have time to dodge the attack, Saito held out his blade and tried to block it.

A wave of intense heat swept over him. Saito could smell his own flesh burning as the raging inferno enveloped him. The force of the blast had knocked him on his back. His lips and cheeks were singed, and he suffered severe burns to his shoulders and legs, but he was alive. Derflinger had absorbed most of the blast.

Saito lept to his feet and hurled himself into the nearest battlemage. He was careful not to use the sharp edge of his blade. It was stupid, but these were human beings. Colbert had taught him not to get used to war, to not lose his humanity in fighting, and the teacher's words had stuck with him. Saito never planned on dying in battle, and he didn't plan on killing anyone either. At the very least, he might get through this without having done the latter.

He couldn't help but think of all the times he had spent with Louise. A lot of it had been annoying and degrading, but it wasn't all bad. Rather, she was his only reason for wanting to stay in this world.

As they went through trials and tribulations, the walls between them seemed to break down. Saito had a strong feeling that they were getting closer, and that her feelings for him were much stronger than she would like to let on.

Saito had come to respect her for her stubborn nature, and she could even be kind at times. As Saito had gotten to know her, it was evident that behind her pride and arrogance, she hid a fragile, insecure self. It was this side of Louise that compelled Saito to protect her. The Louise that had been made fun, humiliated, and had been called "Louise the Zero" by her peers. Saito not only wanted to protect her life, but the honor and dignity that she held so dear.

Standing there amidst Albion banners and staff-wielding battlemages, a well-adorned officer sat upon a horse. Saito was sure that this was their general; this was the commander of the army. If Saito could take him out, he might have a chance of disrupting the chain of command, robbing the whole army of it's ability to mount a coherent response to his assault.

Saito charged forward, knocking mage after mage out of his way. Despite numerous efforts to subdue him, Saito pressed forward. He managed to make it all the way to the general's post, but two staffs blocked him and threw him to the ground. The twin mages began chanting as Saito tried to get to his feet. Before he could stop their attacks, a volley of ice daggers sailed at him.

Saito rolled out of the way and watched as the projectiles stabbed the ground where he had just been. He brought the sword down hard, first on one, then on another. Having taken care of the two mages guarding the general, Saito made a run for it.

"Partner, behind you!" Derflinger warned.

Saito turned around to see a cascade of arrows hurtling towards him. His swings were so quick that if one were to see him, they may not realize his arms were moving at all. Hundreds of arrows were deflected, but he couldn't stop them all.

An arrow grazed past Saito's cheek, a few more bit at his leg. He could feel the flesh around his arm begin to tear and the warmth of his blood as it soaked his parka. When the torrent of arrows had subsided, Saito stood there, struggling to catch his breath. An intense pain in his side caused him to wince every time he breathed. Saito looked down and saw the arrow that had pierced his ribcage.

He had lost too much blood. His vision became blurry, and he could no longer stand. Saito stared up the night sky at two unfamiliar moons. One was a strange blue color, the other one had an almost pink hue. It reminded him of her hair.

She was cute, that much Saito was sure of. She didn't have the seductive allure of Kirche and she wasn't as kind as Siesta, but defying all rationality, he loved her. Saito knew he shouldn't have feelings for someone who had been so cruel to him, someone who probably didn't love him back.

He loved her for her frailty. He loved her for her strength. He loved her for being stubborn. He loved her for those rare moments of compassion. And he loved her for her willingness to put her own life on the line. The latter of these, was precisely why he was here, dying in land far from his home. He knew nobles looked at death as if it were a game, that they threw words like "honor" and "dignity" around as if these words had meaning on their own merit. He thought he knew her.

But she hadn't chosen to risk her life for any of those things. When Saito found out she had taken on this stupid, suicidal mission, he was sure she was merely acting out an 'aristocrat's duty'. The tears in her eyes, however, had told Saito that she didn't want to die.

She hadn't taken the mission for her stupid nobility, she had taken the mission for the same reason Saito would have. She'd accepted the mission because she cared about her friends, the Queen, and perhaps even Saito. She cared about all the people that would be killed if they weren't given a chance to escape. And so, Saito had taken on the task himself. He knew she would never agree with it, so he drugged her and had Julio take her out of Albion, along with all the other evacuees. If he hadn't done this, he could never claim that he loved her.

Orange lights began to glow all around him. It was a serene, peaceful visage, but Saito realized that these were actually wands, and that this was the prelude to a massive barrage of fire. The entire field had lit up, every single mage within the army's ranks were geared up and ready to put Saito out of his misery.

"Louise . . ."

He would never see her again, never get to hold her in his arms or find out how she really felt about him. Saito wondered if she would cry once she found out, if she would weep for him.

Saito could hear an order being given, and then a multitude of fireballs rose to the sky. He could feel the intense flames heating up the air as they started to hurtle down towards him. Saito knew this was it, he would die right here on this foreign battlefield. He braced himself for a brutal impact. In fear, despair, and desperation, Saito screamed out Louise's name for the last time before his life ended.

Void, nothing, just blackness. Saito wondered if this was the afterlife. In his groggy, delirious mind, he had died for a second time, relived the time when his body went cold and his heart had stopped beating. He remembered that Delfringer had told him about transporting his body to a nearby forest, where he had been resurrected and nursed back to health by a beautiful half-elf.

However, when Saito opened his eyes, it wasn't the golden-haired Tiffania that he saw before him, but an strawberry-haired angel, well, she wasn't quite an _angel_, but she looked the part. An overwhelming feeling of relief washed over him. All the fear and despair from his nightmares was gone. It was all in the past, he'd really gone through it all and was safe at his parent's home in Japan. What Saito was most grateful for, however, was that this girl was at his side, at this very moment.

Saito's mind began to untangle itself as he remembered everything that had happened the night before. Eiji had walked in on Saito and Louise during an initmate moment; Louise blamed Saito for the awkward situation and had made him sleep on the floor. She must have gotten lonely and had forgotten her pride, because she was no longer alone in his bed, but curled up on the floor beside him.

Saito brought his face closer to hers and watched her as she slept. He could feel her breath blowing against his lips. Her long eyelashes fluttered as her eyes moved behind the lids. Saito brushed a lock of hair away from her face and ran his hand through it.

His thoughts during his dream were still with him. It wasn't the feelings of death or physical pain that had haunted him, but the despair of thinking that his feelings were unrequited. Louise, not truthful to even herself, had at one time fooled Saito, and perhaps even herself, into thinking that she hated him. A lot had happened since then, a lot had changed. Saito knew better, he knew Louise better. Her personality was still _twisted_, but he didn't mind that at all, not anymore.

Saito had learned to love that part of her too. She could be kind, caring, and endearingly insecure. She could also be short-tempered, spoiled, and sadistically cruel. Louise was Louise, and Saito wouldn't haver her any other way.

Louise slowly opened her eyes, which quickly widened. The sight of Saito staring so closely at her was apparently more than a bit of a shock for her to wake up to.

"Wuh?! W-w-why are you staring at me?!"

"Because I love you, and you love me, right?"

"Well, of course I, uh . . . I smell food!"

That wasn't the answer Saito was looking for, but he was hungry, so he resigned himself and followed Louise downstairs.

* * *

- 0 -

* * *

Louise, had trouble making eye-contact with Saito's parents. Everyone ate breakfast quietly without saying much of anything. Everyone avoided bringing up last night's fiasco.

Eiji was the first one to try to break the silence. "So . . . erm, did everyone sleep well last night?" The question only served to intensify the awkward atmosphere. Louise just looked down into her plate of eggs and twirled them around. She was mortified, she thought for sure that everyone was thinking about what happened last night. It was entirely unbecoming of a woman of her status to have behaved in such a manner. Hanae stared at her husband, reprimanding him with her eyes.

"Erhm, well anyway . . ." Eiji grinned nervously at his wife, who was still glaring daggers at him from across the table. "Eggs are great hun, you really out-did yourself with your cooking, can't wait 'til dinner."

Hanae's eyes widened for a second, as if a light-bulb had been switched on in her head. "Almost forgot, thanks for reminding me." Hanae quickly finished eating and then stood up from the table "Hey Louise, could you help me prepare dinner?"

"C-C-Certainly." Louise got up from the table and followed her to the kitchen.

Hanae looked over her shoulder, she was acting strange. Hanae gave Eiji a nod, who responded by coaxing Saito into the living room. She turned around to look at Louise. "Hey, Louise, you know that Saito's eighteenth birthday has already passed, right?"

"Yes, last December, wasn't it?" Louise couldn't understand why Hanae was acting so secretively.

"I'd like to make him a birthday cake."

"Huh?"

"You don't celebrate birthdays on your world. Or you don't have cakes?"

"We do, but cakes really aren't specific to birthdays. In any case, why would you throw him a birthday party when it isn't his birthday?"

"Because we didn't get to."

Louise's face grew sullen. "Oh . . . I think that's a pretty good idea, actually."

"Your moping, cut it out. Haven't I already told you that you've got nothing to feel guilty over? In any case, have you ever made a cake? I think things like this are more meaningful if they are made by someone you love. "

The thought made her blush a little, but then Louise realized that she had never cooked anything before. "J-Just once, Mrs. Hiraga.," Louise lied. she didn't know how this woman would react if she told her that she was used to household servants doing all the cooking.

"Call me Hanae, hun. So tell me, how did you celebrate Saito's birthday on your world? Did you have a big party? You didn't let him drink, did you? He's still too young for that, and I know he'd probably end up doing something stupid."

"I never really got the chance to celebrate Saito's birthday.," Louise said. "Saito went off with a friend, and I hadn't seen him for that entire day, and once more, didn't tell me that it was his birthday." Louise felt a twinge of a guilt. She cared about Saito more than anyone else in the world, yet she never even threw him a birthday party. Of course, if she had thrown her familiar an extravagant celebration, it might have caused a great deal of gossip among the highest ranking nobles.

"And he left you all by yourself? Aren't you his lover?"

"Uwhah?! L-L-Lover?!" Louise had become flustered after hearing Hanae put it so frankly. Louise wasn't sure what she meant by that, or if Saito's mother was aware that they hadn't actually _done_ anything, at least not what she seemed to be implying here.

"W-Well we, uh, that is to say, Saito never told me that it was his birthday, and I see him on a daily basis, so I didn't mind. I'm sure he had a lot to think about." In actuality, Saito was homesick and depressed on his birthday. Louise had failed to understand what was going and they got into a fight. Not long after that, Guiche had hijacked Saito and went off drinking. She, Kirche, and Montemorency found the two of them passed out and naked on a pig farm not far from the academy, but Louise wasn't about to tell _that_ to his mother. The rest of the Odine knights claimed to not know anything about it.

Hanae picked up a book off the shelf and flipped to a page and handed it to Louise. It had a picture of a cake and a bunch of symbols she didn't recognize.

"I can't read this world's writing."

"Oh well, never mind that.," Hanae said. "A pound cake is simple enough to make, you already have all the ingredients you need right there in that bowl. Just pour it into the pan and set it in the oven for about an hour or so. The oven is already set to the the correct temperature, so you need only to turn it on. Simple, right?"

"Of course!" Louise said with confidence.

"So, how are things going with you and my son anyways?"

"Uwah?" Louise's face turned red as her thoughts drifted to the night before. If Saito's father hadn't interrupted them that time, Louise wasn't sure how far things would have gone. Or rather, she knew, but didn't want to admit it. In her mind, three months was too soon a for a proper lady to do _that_.

"I ah . . . things are going well." Louise paused for a moment as she tried to think of all the highlights of their relationship, but all she could come up with was Siesta's breasts pressed up against Saito, that persistent maid was always in the way, and never gave up on trying to seduce him. Siesta wasn't the only person Louise had to worry about; There was Siesta's cousin, Jessica, who's bust was was even larger; Kirche, who was constantly teasing Louise; There was Tiffania, that ridiculously large-breasted elf; and to add insult to injury, Louise had even caught Saito hanging around Tabitha while she was nude . . . and that girl was completely flat-chested!

By now, Louise was furiously stirring the mix while muttering to herself about the Princess. Henrietta was a girl just a year older than Louise, and had been her childhood friend. She was actually the Queen of Tristania, but had asked Louise not to refer to her as such, having loathed the burden and lack of true companions. Henrietta had even made Louise a lady-in-waiting, and the second in line to the throne. In short, Louise was legally a sister to Henrietta and a princess to the kingdom of Tristania. That same young woman that Louise admired and cherished, she had caught kissing Saito. It'd been a chance occurrence, but Henrietta had apparently harbored deep feelings for Saito, and not even their friendship was going to stop her from pursuing him. The whole ordeal caused Louise to do something she thought she'd never do: slap the piss out of Henrietta.

Saito wasn't entirely innocent either, he should have pulled away, or pushed her off. He should have did something other than kissing her back and allowing Louise's heart to break. Saito had plainly rejected Henrietta, and Louise had forgiven them both . . . but the memory still made her blood boil. Louise didn't notice the tornado she was creating with the batter until Hanae held her arm and slowed her down.

"Easy there kiddo, your not trying to kill it, just mix it around a little bit." She smiled, crossed her arms, and sighed.

"He doesn't understand me at all! He pays no attention to me at all and goes off to stare at another's girl's breasts! And that maid, always hanging off of him, flirting with him . . ." Louise tightly gripped the whisk hard enough to destroy it. Her face twisted into a demonic snarl and her eye twitched as if her mind had just broken.

"Guys tend to be like that, unfortunately. They seem to think more with their . . . well, lets just say they don't think much with their brains. I find that with Eiji, a swift kick to the offending appendage usually does the trick , but . . . I don't think Saito would have been born if I had done _that_ to often.

"The same goes for you, kid. Don't be kicking that boy in the junk, I don't care how stupid he acts. I'd like to be a Grandmother one of these days. It's in their nature to be stupid, so you have to forgive them for that, at least a little. You'd drive yourself insane if you got jealous every time they so much as looked at other women."

Hanae chuckled a bit as she held a rolling pin in her hands. "A little blunt-force trauma to the head never hurt anyone though, especially Saito. I hate to say it, but if you haven't noticed, he isn't exactly the brightest crayon in the box. He takes for too much after his father."

Louise couldn't believe it. Saito's mother was practically giving her permission to beat him. A sinister smile curled on her otherwise cute face.

* * *

-0-

* * *

Eiji set his coffee down on an end table. He turned around in his chair to face his son. "So, let's talk more about this Halkeginia."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm just curious. It's been a long time since we've seen one another; we've got a lot of catching up to do. You've been in an entirely different world for over a year now, surely you must have tons of stories to tell." Eiji chuckled, "All I really have is boring stories from work, and I don't think you want to hear about the photocopier getting trashed."

"Where have you been living all this time, are you fed well? I mean, do you live with that girl's parents or something? She seems a little on the pampered side; It's unlikely that a girl like that has a family that would approve of her being married off to a boy like you, no offense."

"Well, that is to say, her family is rich, and neither her sister or her father seem to like me. But, I've become a noble since then, so it's not like her dad has much to complain about." Saito distinctly remembered Duke De la Valliere ordering Saito to be decapitated after catching him making out with Louise on their family estate. When Saito went back to ask for Louise's hand in marriage, the Duke wasn't very pleased. Louise's father hadn't sought to separate Saito's head from his body that time, because by then Saito had not only become a chevalier, a knight to Queen Henrietta, but he had enough accomplishments under his belt that he was famous amongst the commoners.

Duke De La Valliere's attempt to have his beloved daughter married to a suitable noble had failed miserably. The fiancé that had been chosen for her, Viscount Wardes, had turned out to be a traitor. He had been a member of Reconquista, a group of nobles that sought to overthrow the monarchy of Albion.

The fact that Louise was unwilling to marry Viscount Wardes in the first place, didn't sit well with his plans to use her void magic to strengthen the Reconquista. Wardes ended up trying to force her to marry him by resorting to mind control. In the end, Saito foiled Wardes' plot, but the whole affair still ended with the death of the last heir to the throne of Albion, Prince Wales Tudor, and a war between Tristainia and the new government of Albion.

In stark contrast to Wardes' treachery, Saito had fought or otherwise participated in battles, and had come to the aid of Tristania multiple times. He was famous for the task of holding off the army of seventy-thousand alone. He and Louise had also thwarted the King of Gallia, Joseph on multiple occasions, and they stopped an ancient dragon from potentially annihilating the whole world.

So, Duke De La Valiere was not necessarily _pleased_ with this common-born noble taking his daughter away, but Saito was the only reasonable candidate, and the most capable of protecting her.

Eiji couldn't stop himself from spitting out his coffee. "A noble? You? Your telling me that you're now a member of that world's high society? Don't tell me tales, kid. I may not know much about that world, but don't think you can spin fantastical exaggerations of yourself based on my lack of understanding."

"I'm not exaggerating, and I'm not lying. I've actually become rather wealthy in Halkeginia."

Eiji's raised a brow and stuck out his palm in jest. "I'd like to borrow a million bucks please." Eiji laughed heartily as he mocked his son.

"I had quite a bit of cash when I came up here and I'm now the lord of a large estate. I intend to make sure both you and mom are set. Unfortunately, Louise spent just about every dime I have on clothes and jewelry before we got here."

Eiji scratched the bridge of his nose. "Your _not_ _joking_, are you? First the girl, then magic, then the talking hand, now your telling me that you're rich. You do realize that what your telling me is a little hard to believe, even considering everything else. How did you come about such good fortune."

"Oh well, you know," Saito said. "Louise is close friends with the Queen, and I've run a few errands here and there." Saito wasn't about to tell his father about all the life-threatening situations he and Louise had been in, or that he took part in the war against Albion.

"I'm having a hard time believing that you would have obtained all that simply by doing a few simple errands."

Suddenly the glyphs on Saito's left hand began to glow. "Might as well as tell him everything, partner, this man is persistent, and more perceptive than a certain someone I know!"

"Shut up Delf.," Saito Said.

Saito's father looked at him impatiently. "You really aren't lying, and that world is dangerous, isn't it? I know you Saito.I know when your trying to hide things from me." Eiji finished his coffee,looking into an empty cup before his expression grew more serious. "Here's the deal, I want you to tell me everything, and keep quiet about it to your mother"

Saito scratched his head, trying to think of a way to describe what it had been like to live in Halkeginia all this time. He didn't know any reasonable way to tell his father that he'd been involved in a war and that getting himself into dangerous situations had become commonplace for him.

"Every once in a while Louise is called upon because of her magic abilities, and because she's one of the few people that the Queen trusts. I'm Louise's familiar, and it's my job to protect her at times like that."

Saito could see it on Eiji's face that this concerned him."I thought you said earlier that all nobles were mages, is there something special about this girl?"

"Louise isn't like most mages, she can't even form a decent spell half-way right, and when she tries, it usually blows up in her face, literally. She doesn't have normal mage powers, but something else, some rare magic called "void". It's powerful, but if people were to know she had it, she'd be in danger."

"Then stay here."

"I-I don't belong here anymore. Most of my friends are in that world, Louise's family is there too. I can't just up and tear her from her sisters. I know what it's like to be separated from your family, and I don't want to do the same to her."

"Even if she did it to you?"

"That wasn't her fault."

"How are you going to protect her, how are you going make sure that you are both safe?!"

Delfringer, who had been silent all this time, finally chimed up. "Because he's Gandalfr!"

"Gandalfr? What in the heck are you talking about?"

"It's another name for a void familiar. I can use any weapon, any weapon at all so long as it was specifically built to be used as one. How do you think I was able to even fly the Zero fighter?"

"Have you . . . fought in any battles? Have you had to kill people?"

"I'm afraid so." Saito said, looking down at the floor. "Not just magical creatures, but humans have attacked us too."

Eiji walked over and put his hands on Saito's shoulders. "All the more reason you should say here, where it's safe. If this world is really like you say, then I couldn't possibly send you back into it. I-we lost you once already. I couldn't bare to go through that again, I couldn't bare to see your mother go through that!"

"I'll be fine. My speed and strength actually increase due to my powers, so there isn't much to worry about. I can manage, I'm probably the only one who can. There's a lot of people back in Halkeginia who have depended on me, and I've depended on them. I want to make sure that they are all safe.

"Besides that, what kind of future is there for us here? Louise doesn't know a thing about this world, she's not even able to function outside of her aristocratic circles. I'm not much better off; my grades were always poor, and I have no hope of getting into a good college. We can't just stick around here for the rest of our lives. I want to raise a family. I don't think I can do that in this world."

"I give up." Eiji said, putting his hands up in resignation. "But only because I can no longer tell you want to do. And besides that, you really _don't_ have much of a future in store for you here, no offense. "

"Non taken.

"Just make sure you keep this conversation between you and me. I'd rather not shave any more years off of your mother's life." Eiji stopped talking just as Hanae walked by dressed in a pant suit. She looked like a completely different woman that when Saito first arrived.

"Well, I'm off" Hanae said cheerfully. She held on to her handbag and walked towards the door. Saito was amazed at how much better she looked. His heart ached as he came to the realization that it was because he had finally returned that she was able to look like herself again, that she was able to get a full night's sleep for once, that she was finally able to pull herself together. Saito and Louise would soon leave again for Halkegina, but this time his parents would know where he was, and this time they would know that he'd be coming back.

"Take care, hun." Eiji replied. He looked at his watch. "Speaking of which, I'm going to be late for work myself if I don't get out of here, "I'll talk to you later Saito. Not much to do around here I suppose, but there's still the TV. If you get hungry, you know your way around the kitc-" Eiji paused for a moment. "You know what, it's a great day out today, you should really take that little lady of yours out to dinner! Here, take this, Ill see you later Saito!" Eiji handed Saito a wad of cash and was quickly out the door.

Saito turned on the TV and changed it to one of the major news networks. He was curious about what had been going on in the world during his absence. Apparently an earthquake had hit the east coast. Saito remembered that there had been a massive earthquake before Saito was hurled across the cosmos. It was a big deal, it was one of the largest ever recorded, and even caused some nuclear power plants to have a meltdown.

Coverage soon shifted from local events, to things happening across the globe. Countries in the west were still caught up in pointless wars and there was a lot of talk about the global economic crisis that was still taking place. Saito had always looked at these major global events as if he were an uninvolved observer. Things that didn't happen in his immediate life never really seemed real to him. He never imagined himself as someone who would be close to world leaders, or would have anything to do with the major problems of the world, yet in Halkegenia, he was close to and had dealt with the Queen of Tristain almost on a weekly basis.

One of the things that it seemed both Earth and Halkeginia had in common, was the blood spilled for unjustified reasons. Bigger countries aimed to subjugate smaller, less powerful ones. Those in power only sought more power. The same that was true on Earth, was true in Halkeginia. After the monarchy in Albion was overthrown by a Coup d'état led by a group of nobles, the new Albion set it's sights on Tristainia. Henrietta, who's the same age as Saito, was just a young and inexperienced girl at the start of the war. This is how Louise and Saito ended up getting involved with the war against Albion, and how Saito found himself launched into the role of Tristainia's "hero".

It's a role he never really wanted. He never wanted to risk his life, nor did he want to have to kill anyone. He witnessed first hand the stupidity of mankind, people willing to risk their lives for something as simple as 'honor'. Saito didn't believe in honor the way the nobles saw it. Fighting and dying for nothing more than a name and status wasn't honor, it was stupid.

Saito got tired of watching the news and quickly changed it to the first anime he could find. It was a generic shonen where the good guy gets the girl and defeats a series of unusual and increasingly powerful enemies. The entire female cast had unrequited crushes on the protagonist, while he spent the whole story chasing after the most stuck-up, annoying girl among them. Saito thought the plot was entirely unrealistic.

* * *

- 0 -

* * *

Louise took a quick look around the dividing wall in-between the kitchen and the dining room. Saito could be seen sitting on the couch in the living room, staring at some sort of object in front of him. There was light coming from it, and it cast an eerie glow across his face. Whatever he was staring at, she hoped that it would occupy him at least long enough to figure out what she was going to do with this cake.

Louise realized that she had been left alone without any help. She had never actually baked a cake before, or done any cooking at all. She began to panic.

This sort of work was entirely unbecoming of a Duke's daughter, but Hanae was counting on her, and she wanted to see Saito happy. Would Saito be happy that she made him a cake? Louise wanted to see the look on Saito's face, she wanted it to be perfect. She dipped her finger into the batter and stuck it into her mouth. It wasn't bad at all, but she thought it couldn't hurt to be a little sweeter.

Louise rummaged though the cabinet and pulled out a few containers. She couldn't read the labels, so she popped lids off of each one until she found one that was filled with tiny white crystals. "I probably shouldn't put too much in." Louise said to herself. She took one of the measuring cups that Hanae used earlier and poured the white powder in. Of course, she couldn't actually measure the sugar, so she simply eye-balled what she thought was a decent amount. She figured that there really wasn't such a thing as 'too sweet'.

"One hour." Louise put the cake in the oven and then ran off to the living room. Saito was sitting down on the couch. In front of him, a flat, rectangular device displayed images of people and various other things. It reminded Louise of a scrying mirror, except the images didn't look like they were real at all.

"What is this thing?" Louise said. ''I thought you said you didn't have magic in your world, you lied to me!"

"We don't. That's a television."

"A tell-a-what?"

"It's technology, it takes images from somewhere else, and displays it on this screen. I can't tell you exactly how it works, but I can assure you, it's not magic."

"If you don't know how it works, then how do you know it's not magic?"

"Your right, I don't really know what I'm talking about."

"I already knew that. In any case, what are you doing?"

"I'm watching TV."

"I can see that you dumb mutt!" Louise punched him in the back of the head. "I meant, what are you watching on this thing?!"

Saito rubbed the back of his head, a rather tender whelp had appeared. "They call this anime. It's basically a bunch of drawings strung together to make it look like things are moving."

Louise didn't get it, but she had lost interest. She watched as couple of large metal golems attacked each other and the protagonists shouted out cheesy lines and catchphrases. "I'm bored, I want to watch something else."

"Too bad, I have the remote."

"Well then, hand it over."

"Why?"

"Because I'm your master, and I said so!"

Louise lunged at the remote, draping herself across him as she did so. Seeing his face, she realized that climbing all over him had overexcited him. She wondered what kind of perverted thoughts might be running through his head. She thought about changing tactics.

"Saito . . ." Louise spoke to him in a seductive voice. "If you give me that remote, I'll give you an award." Louise pinned Saito to the couch and wrapped her arms around his neck, her lips were no more than an inch from his ear. "But if you don't give me what I want, I'm afraid I'm going to have to punish you."

At first Saito looked as if he was going to give in, but then smiled coyly. "Okay, how about we go upstairs right now?"

"Uwah?!"

"Yeah, that's what I thought. Nice try, Louise."

"Grr . . . you damn dog!"

Saito stood up and held the remote out of her reach and teased her as she vainly tried to grab for it. He seemed to be enjoying this too much, the fact that he had the upper-hand annoyed Louise. She planted her foot directly into Saito's crotch. He immediately dropped the remote and held his abused nether regions in pain.

"Serves you right, she said." Louise mashed around on the buttons, accidentally turning the volume up so high that the both of them couldn't hear each other speak.

Louise covered her ears. "Ahhhh! Make it stop!"

"It's your fault, you idiot!" Saito grabbed the remote out of Louise's hands and turned it down. "Here, these are the buttons for volume, this is the turn it on or off, and these flip through channels" he said. Louise took the remote back from Saito and began rapid-fire switching through channels. Finally she found a sufficiently feminine program.

"Great, you found a chick-flick." Saito didn't seem at all enthused.

They both sat and watched for a few minutes as Louise tried to figure out what it was exactly that they were watching. "I get it.," she said. "This is a play! It looks so real though. . ."

"Well, actually, it's a movie, but I suppose that's a pretty close description. These are actors."

Louise wasn't really used to going into town back in Tristainia. Henrietta had sent them both into Tristainy, the capital city, a few times on an errand or to gather information, and Saito had taken Louise to the market a few times, but she hadn't gotten many chances to go to a theater. Her parents always discouraged her from going to the 'rougher' parts of town by herself.

Louise's eyes lit up as the main protagonist, Romario uttered some fairly cheesy lines and told the woman that he was in love with her. The women, who's name was Jullieta, acted coldly towards the young man, yet he persisted and practically begged her to marry him. Louise looked over and noticed that Saito was staring at her with a look of utter disbelief.

"It's not like I want you to say something like that or anything!" Louise tilted her nose up and quickly faced the other direction, as if trying to avoid his gaze. She continued to ignore Saito and watched as the love drama began to unfold on screen. Romario treated Julieta as if she was a queen. The more he attended to this women's every whim, the more jealous and aggravated Louise was about the fact that Saito had gotten more defiant lately.

"Just because your also my h-husband, does not excuse you from the duty as a familiar. It's a master's duty to keep their familiar in check!"

"Huh, where'd that come from?"

Louise imagined herself standing before a kneeling, apologetic Saito. She recalled the whip tucked firmly in place in her dresser back at the mansion. Saito would not get away with embracing Makoto and her breasts, for those dirty magazines under his bed, and for the embarrassment she had to endure the night before. She began to lose herself in her rationalizations and sadistic fantasies.

Louise and Saito sat and watched the movie, not saying much of anything. Louise was starting to loose interest in the plot, but pretended to be absorbed in it anyway, she pretended that she hadn't noticed Saito edging closer to her. He tried the lame maneuver of yawning and putting his arm on the back of the couch behind her. Just as the characters on screen were about to kiss, Saito drew his lips closer to Louise's.

Louise was startled by Saito suddenly leaning in to kiss her. Her initial reaction was to push him away in annoyance, but something about his body hanging over hers, she began to allow herself to recede into the soft cushions. Finally she gave in and clenched Saito tightly. She had been annoyed with him earlier, but now she had forgotten why.

Louise made out with Saito on the couch until she lost track of her surroundings. She held onto him as if he would run away if she let go. It was a rare occasion that it was just the two of them, without anyone else around to intervene. Saito's parents were at work, and that troublesome maid was still back home in Tristainia. Louise finally had Saito all to herself. Saito's scent flooded Louise's senses, but becoming increasingly unfamiliar. He started to smell as if something were burning.

Louise shook her had as if jolting herself awake. That burning smell was actually coming from the kitchen. She had forgotten about the cake, she'd left it in the oven too long. Saito looked dazed and confused as Louise pushed him off of her and jumped up. Wasting no time, Louise used Saito's face as a launching pad and jumped off the couch and into the kitchen.

Louise opened the oven door and reached for the cake. She pulled out a partially-burnt mass from the oven and screamed at the top of her lungs. She had forgotten to use oven mitts.

"Are you okay in there?!" Saito hollered from the living room with a worried tremor in his voice."

Louise didn't want Saito coming into the kitchen to investigate. She was just about to tell him that everything was fine, but she could hear him jumping off the couch. "Don't come in here!" she yelled.

"Why not?

"Uh . . . Because your just a dumb familiar and you'd be in my way. Now shut up and let me think!"

"Do I smell something burning in there?"

Louise had to come up with something to tell him, other than the fact that there was a half-way burnt cake on the table that was supposed to be a surprise. She blew on her throbbing hands and yelled back at him, "Ah, yes, I just ah, Your mother left some sort of meat in the oven, I think it' was ham."

"If it's half-way edible, I'll eat it! I'm starving!"

Louise couldn't understand how he could already be hungry again. It was around two hours ago that everyone was gathered at the dining table, eating breakfast. In any case, Louise had to think of something fast, she couldn't let Saito into the kitchen, and she didn't know where anything was, or how to cook. "It's completely burnt, I'm not eating this!"

"Then don't, I will." Saito started to walk towards the kitchen. Louise peaked around the corner just as he entered the dining room. She ran over to cut him off, then pointed a kitchen knife at him.

"Stop right there!"

"Huh, your acting kinda funny. Where's this ham at?"

"It was burnt, of course, so I threw it away." Louise darted back into the kitchen and grabbed the cake, completely disregarding how hot the pan was, and shoved it into the fridge. Just as she closed the door, Saito walked up behind her.

"Say, Louise, this might be as good a time as any. what do you say we go out on a date?"

"Whah . . .?!"


	3. Chapter 3: The Familiar's Zero

_Well, it's been quite a while since I lasted update. Life, work, and an overestimation of my ability to write in a timely fashion. I hope to improve the speed at which I write, if for nothing else, for the fact that this story will take an awfully long time to tell otherwise. XD_

* * *

_Chapter 3_: _**The Familiar's Zero**_

* * *

Louise wore a dark, purple dress. It was shoulder-less with an open back. The bodice, a corset, was laced together by strings in the front and the top formed a heart shape over her chest, disguising the fact that there wasn't much there. The bodice ended in a frilly skirt that hung just above her knees; a small hint of her thighs could be seen in-between the skirt and her usual black stockings. Saito had told her she was overdressed, but he scarcely took his eyes off of her.

The last time she had put so much effort into getting his attention, she was working as a waitress in a tavern in Tristania, a task she, the daughter of a Duke would not have been doing if the Princess hadn't asked her to keep an eye on the locals. She had won a contest for tips, and the right to wear an enchanted dress. Even though the dress was enchanted, it had not caused Saito to pay her much more attention than he would normally. She thought it might have been broken, or maybe, it didn't work if the person she was trying to attract, was already in love with her to begin with. That was a long time ago, closer to when they first met. Was it possible, that he had feelings for her even then?

The both of them had just left the subway station, and were now in a part of the city full of tall buildings and storefronts. It was Tokyo's business district, and the same place Saito had taken Louise just before they showed up at his parents' house. Louise had been walking faster than Saito, she stopped, crossed her arms, and waited impatiently for him to catch up. He hurried over to her, and took her by the hands. Louise's hands stung a bit as she allowed Saito to gently lift them by the palms. He was examining her long, black gloves, which stretched to around the middle of her upper arm. They were eloquent, and matched the dress, however, she wasn't wearing them for fashion, but to cover up the bandages on her hands. "How the heck did you manage to burn yourself on a ham anyway, and what did you do with it?" Saito asked.

Louise had told him a lie in haste, she didn't want him to know that she had baked a belated birthday cake, or that his parents planned on throwing a surprise party with just the four of them latter that evening. "I told you, I threw it away. Are you doubting your master? Never mind that, have you nothing to say about the way I look? You should be grateful that I bothered to dress up for you at all!"

Louise was simply trying to change the subject, but she really had put a lot of effort into her appearance for this date. In stark contrast, Saito hadn't really worn anything of value. The Lord of De Ornielle wore a blue, buttoned-up shirt tucked into a pair of jeans. She thought he looked unusually handsome, but also rather ordinary. She was at least grateful for the fact that she managed to get him to comb his usually messy hair. To her recollection, it had been her first time seeing his hair combed back like that. She made a mental note to remind herself to force him to do this more often during social occasions. Saito scratched his head as he spoke. "Um, you look really good in that dress.," he said.

"Of course I do!" She put her hands on her hips as she said this with an arrogant huff. She was trying to act cold and apathetic, but she liked being complimented, even if she had to remind him to do so. She locked arms with Saito and allowed him to lead her across the street. Louise noticed a sign near the doorway of the building up ahead, but she couldn't read what it said. A young woman in a maid's uniform smiled at Saito and Louise as they approached.

"Welcome home master, welcome home mistress." The maid greeted them both as if they were the lords of whatever manor they had come upon. Louise was confused, she thought Saito was taking her to a restaurant, but this was clearly a house servant. The building didn't look like a mansion, or any sort of household at all, being as it was sandwiched between other buildings. It looked to her, very similar to the store fronts in Tristainia. She peered into the large window behind the maid. Sure enough, she could see people dining at several wooden tables. It was indeed a restaurant, but all the waitresses were dressed up to look like maids. Louise turned to ask Saito what this was about, but he had a big, stupid grin on his face as he stared at the maid. Something was definitely strange about this situation. Louise grimaced in frustration as they walked into the restaurant.

It wasn't large, or particularly luxurious compared to some of the , but it was at least nicer than Scarron's tavern in Tristainia. A clean, checkered tiles on the floor reflected the light from the room. The left wall was line with several booths, and in the right corner was a bar. The cafe' gave off a very casual, inviting atmosphere. Louise walked in, sat down, and took a menu she couldn't read. There were a few pictures to go with some of the unfamiliar words, but not much else. "I'll just have what your having." Louise looked around the establishment, more maids were attending to the other customers. They were all pretty young girls. Louise thought for sure, that Saito had brought her to this maid cafe because he had a maid fetish. It made sense to her, he was always paying so much attention to Siesta. This was proof in her eyes that he liked that maid more than her. After all the effort she had put into making that cake for him, he brought her here on this date just so he could ogle the other girls. "Unforgivable!" she muttered.

Louise thought about kicking Saito underneath the table, but then she thought better of it. She might as well give him the benefit of the doubt, if not just this once. Besides that, she really didn't want to make a scene. Just as Louise was thinking about letting Saito off the hook, a tall, busty maid with long hair put up into twin-tails, came to take their order. "Welcome master, what can I get for you toda-hey! It's you guys!" the maid looked cheerfully at Saito, and then at Louise.

"Makato!" Saito shouted enthusiastically. "What are you doing here?"

Louise looked up at the waitress. It was indeed the same girl that they both met yesterday. It seemed rather peculiar, that this same girl happened to work at the restaurant that Saito had chosen, full of girls that were dressed up as maids.

"I start college this month, so I've been trying to save up enough cash to pay my own way through. The pay here is decent for a waitressing gig, but the tips are out of this world!"

"I see. So how's Takashi doing?"

"Eeh, we sort of broke up last spring. He got a chance to study abroad, and he took it. I can't say I blame him. Things weren't that serious between us in the first place, and it was a pretty big opportunity. So what about you? What are your plans? I mean, if you don't mind me asking, what have you been doing lately? You haven't been at school at all, are you even able to get into a university?"

"He has no need for any of that, he's a nobleman. Besides, this dog's brain isn't developed enough for high education, he's better off just wagging his tail and doing as he's told."

"I went overseas on a cargo ship. and ended up in the U.S." Saito grinned sheepishly at Louise, but she had no idea what he was talking about.

"Really? You must really be fluent in English by now then!"

"Uh no, I actually didn't stay there long. Some of the crew found me sleeping on-board, and threatened to turn me into the local authorities. They were short handed at the time and allowed me to stay as long as I worked."

"And that's how you met Louise?"

"Err . . . Yeah, thats right. Her father is rich and owns the shipping company and would come to the docks to uh, oversee things personally."

By this time, Louise realized that Saito was lying his ass off. She rested her cheek on her fist and sighed in resignation. Saito obviously couldn't tell her about Halkeginia, void powers, or about their mansion in De Orneille. It couldn't be helped, but he didn't have to lay it on so thick.

"Hey, Louise," Makato said. "Are you an American? I hope I don't sound rude, it's just that you don't really look Japanese at all."

"I uh . . ." Louise was dumbfounded, she had no idea what an 'American' was, and couldn't for sure say she was or was not.

"And that hair, it's so beautiful! Your pretty bold to be walking around with it dyed such an unusual color. I once dyed my hair blond, but all the other girls were angry and made fun of me for it. Those girls made me cry, but it's okay, we're all friends now."

Louise didn't know if she'd just been complimented or, insulted. She held a lock of her hair and looked at it, it was the same shade of pink as her mother's. She never thought there was anything unusual about it. "Died? Hair cannot die, it's not alive in the first place."

"No, I mean like, dye, you know, changing your hair color?"

"I've used no such magic, this is the same hair that I was born with."

"Eh?!"

Saito quickly spoke up before Louise could say anything else. "Ah yeah, she's actually half American on her mother's side. She's stayed with her father for most of her life, so she never learned English all that well" Saito said. Louise hoped that Makoto was as gullible as she looked, Saito was obviously terrible at lying. "Anyways, her father caught me making out with Louise on a boat-OWW!"

Louise kicked Saito in the knee before he could finish the sentence. She didn't appreciate having her entire history rewritten by Saito. Furthermore, that last part was half-way true, Louise's father really did catch them in a boat together, it had been the first time that Saito had told her that he loved her. Louise looked at Saito from across the table and thought of that night, it was an important memory to her, and it wasn't something that she wanted him casually talking about with perfect strangers. "Y-your talking her ear off, and you . . . " Louise quickly darted her glance towards Makato. "Shouldn't you be taking our order?" Louise crossed her arms and looked at Makato impatiently.

"Oh, right! I'm so sorry, what would you like me to bring you mistress?"

"I'd like some of your finest wine!"

Makoto stared at Louise with a dumbfound look on her face, then she looked over at Saito.

"Uhh, Louise," Saito said,"the legal drinking age here is twenty."

Louise scowled at Saito and then pouted.

"You know," Makoto said under her breath, "We could just pretend that you're both over the drinking limit."

"Are you sure you won't get into trouble with your boss?"

"Don't worry about it."

Saito took a look at the menu. "whatever is cheapest, I'll take the stout, and Ill have some Ramen and some sushi."

"And mistress, what would you like to eat?"

"I'll have the same as him." Louise had no idea what Saito ordered, but she didn't know anything about the food in this world anyways. Louise's eyes twitched. As Makato walked away, she could clearly see Saito checking her out in her maid uniform. Louise grabbed her fork and jabbed Saito in the arm with it.

"What was that for?!"

"You were looking at her butt!"

"I was not!"

"Don't lie to me!" Louise took her knife and threw it at Saito. He ducked just in time to miss the flying projectile. One of the maids yelled out and the sounds of dishes clattering to the ground could be heard. The knife had thankfully missed the maid, but had implanted itself in the wall behind her. While Saito and Louise were still bickering, Makato came back with their drinks.

Louise sipped her wine and glared at Saito, warning him not to turn his eyes away from her, or to look at Makato or the other maids. Louise hated to admit it, but she could see how the uniforms could mesmerize a man. Short skirts and an apron that seemed to be designed to lift and emphasize a woman's bust, rather than serving any practical purpose. The outfits resembled that which a French maid might wear, Louise could picture Siesta working in a Restaurant like this.

Thinking on it extensively, Makato reminded Louise of Siesta in many ways. Both of them were taller than Louise, and quite well-endowed. They both had dark hair, and almond-shaped eyes that while very unusual for Halkeginia, seemed quite common for the people of Saito's world. Siesta's grandfather was actually from Saito's world, and had apparently been summoned to the world just as Saito had been. Siesta's lineage was partially Japanese, and Saito had even once said that he found her appearance to be nostalgic. The only way the two girls really seemed to contrast with one another, was in their intelligence. Whereas Siesta was very intelligent, Makato was rather ditsy, stupid even.

As air-headed as Makato seemed to be, she was nice enough. This girl really didn't seem to have any ulterior motives, or even the capability for any scheming. Rather than being a threat, she was rather warm and friendly. Even so, the fact that someone who looked so similar to Siesta seemed to have Saito's attention agitated Louise. She however, knew these feelings were somewhat misplaced, she shouldn't be feeling animosity towards Makato, she should be cross with Saito

By this time, Saito had apparently lost the ability to restrain himself, and was eying the girls quite boldly. the top part of the uniform drew attention to the girl's busts. The frilly skirts hung around ten inches up the knee. The skirts they wore were so short, at the right angle, a flash of their panties could be seen for a brief second. Louise found herself intently focused on the girl's attire, but for entirely different reasons. She wondered if Saito would pay Louise the same attention, or more-so, if she wore one of the same uniforms. Louise pushed those thoughts away and focused on how agitating it was to see him behave this way while they were out on a date, and while she was wearing her best dress. Louise's eyebrows twitched as Saito kept looking at each waitress that walked by. Finally, she had enough, and lodged her tiny foot firmly between his legs.

Louise's lips twisted into a sadistic smile as she watched the expression on Saito's face change. His eyes seemed to bulge out a little and every muscle in his body tensed. Louise could almost feel the agony emitting off of him. She smiled at him with an evil grin on her face. She couldn't fully understand why, but she was enjoying this. She repeatedly dug in with her heel. A normal boy would have probably protested, or fought back, but Saito had been trained well. Louise felt a strange sense of satisfaction from watching Saito's face turn red. Finally, Saito grabbed a hold of Louise's foot and forced her to stop abusing him.

"Enough!" Saito's breathed heavily as he struggled to plead with her. "Please, cut that out! Your going to make me sterile if you keep that up!"

It wasn't long until Louise had forgotten why she'd been angry, or that she'd been angry in the first place. She found inflicting pain on Saito to be distracting, but she came back to her senses, ready to lash out at his misconduct. "Well, it serves you right, you mangy dog. Sheesh, you can't even take your eyes off of them for one second. Am I not pretty enough?"

"Well, you see, it's not quite like that . . ."

Louise was over it. She remembered what Hanae had said, guys were just like that, she'd just have to pay it no mind. She was more interested now in salvaging the romantic mood. She remembered watching that thing Saito called a 'TV', a couple exchanged drinks while they'd been out to dinner, Louise thought that they might try the same thing."What did you order anyways?"

"Huh, this? It's beer."

"I would like to try it."

"I don't think you'd like it."

"I have had beer in Albion, if you remember. It is not as palatable as wine, but it's tolerable."

"Louise, this isn't quite what you had in Albion, it's got a pretty strong taste to it."

"Just hand it over." Before Saito could say anything, Louise swiped his glass and drank a mouthful. Louise didn't swallow immediately. Her cheeks, full of beer, gave her the appearance of a chimpmunk. She expected it to be bitter, but she hadn't prepared herself for how strong, or how awful the taste was. The beer tasted like it had been flavored with a generous helping of burnt sawdust. She struggled to keep herself from spitting it out across the table, finally managing to gulp the liquid down.. "Oh gross! How can you drink this garbage?!"

"I told you that you wouldn't like it."

It wasn't long before Makato was back with food. Louise's eyes lit up when she placed the large, steaming bowl of ramen in front of her. Saito wasn't sure if Louise, who's appetite was that of a bird, could finish it all in one sitting. She took her fork and stabbed one of the round tube-like objects on her plate, held it up to her face, and just stared at it.

"It's called sushi, I know it looks weird but it's not bad."

Louise stuck it in her mouth and chewed, "hey, this is pretty good." She said. What's in this anyways?"

"If I remember correctly, it's vinegar-treated rice patties wrapped in seaweed and filled with vegetables and raw fish."

Louise mediately spit the sushi out into her napkin. "Eww, gross, you actually had me eat raw fish?!"

"You didn't think it was so bad just a minute ago."

"That's before I knew what was in it!

Makato came by and filled both their glasses. "So how are you both doing?" She asked. "Can I get you anything?"

"Yeah," Louise said angrily, "I'd like to make a complaint, why is your restaurant serving raw fish?!"

Makato just smiled nervously and tried to maintain her composure. She obviously wasn't used to putting up with customers as rude as Louise. "I'm so sorry about that, can I get you anything else? Would you like an omelet? Or some onigiri?"

"No, this dog is paying for it anyways, so it's fine. Instead, I'd like another glass of wine."

"Certainly."

Saito looked at Louise disapprovingly. "Louise, I know your used to acting a certain way in public, but these people aren't used to someone quite so . . . privileged."

"Privileged? You mean to say that I'm spoiled? Your treating me to dinner, so I'll let it slide, but you were looking at that girl's breasts again." Louise's nonchalant attitude towards Saito's boldness surprised even herself.

"Huh? No, I wasn't!"

"Uh huh, I saw you.," She said playfully. Louise had suddenly become less interested in accusing him, and more interested in toying with him.

Louise brought her face closer to Saito and smiled devilishly. "Your worried that you've angered your master, aren't you? I'm afraid I'm going to have to punish you."

It was common in Halkeginia for all nobles, whatever age, to drink moderately at social events. Drunkenness, however, was highly looked down upon in aristocratic circles. Usually Louise would dilute her wine with fruit juice. This time, however, she had drank two glasses and a even tasted Saito's beer. Louise could feel the blood rushing to her face, it was obvious to even her that she was drunk, but she couldn't be bothered to care.

Louise reached over and grabbed Saito by the cheeks and giggled. Saito gently pushed her hands away as she continued to play with his mouth. "fishy-fishy-fishy!"

"Ah ha, I think that's enough of that"

Makato walked over and took their dirty dishes. "Is there anything else I can get for you guys?"

"Say, can I have another glass of wwiinnee?"

Saito looked at Makato and shook his head profusely; Louise blew raspberries at him in protest.

"I'm sorry hun, but we're all out. . ."

"Your pretty!"

Makato looked puzzled, as if she couldn't believe that this was the same girl.

"Well, would you like anything else, some dessert perhaps?"

"I want . . . I like pie!"

Makato came back with a peice of cherry pie and a bill for Saito. "Thank you" he said, and he handed Makato a tip.

"Thank you Saito!" Makato grabbed Saito and hugged him, inadvertently ramming his face into her chest. "It's because of people like you that I can pay my tuition, every bit counts!"

Louise pouted as she watched Makato cling to her familiar.

"So, how long are you guys going to be in town?"

"Not more than a few more days. I'f we're gone too much longer, the maid might drive herself insane."

"Eh?! A maid? Not a maid like me, but a real maid?"

Saito smiled nervously. "It's a long story."

* * *

- 0 -

* * *

The massive grand hall was void of sound, save for the echo of Siesta's heels as she walked across a marble floor that she had just finished polishing. She had been tiresly toiling at chores, trying to keep her mind off of the dead silence and how creepy the mansion was when no one else was in it. It had only been since yesterday morning that Saito and Louise had left the mansion, but it seemed like an eternity to Siesta. She thought about going back to Tarbes and visiting her family, but Saito would be back soon, surely, and Siesta wanted to be there to greet him when he arrived. She was bored and lonely, she was even starting to miss that self-centered, high-and-mighty aristo-brat.

Saito and Louise were married, and Siesta was happy for them, well, she was at least happy for Saito, but she still harbored feelings for him. As Seista walked across the hall towards the entertainment room, her mind wandered to a not-so-distant past where she had once confessed her feelings for Saito, even kissed him. He rejected Siesta that night. Saito had made his choice, but the fact that nobles undervalued their lives worried Siesta. She feared that Louise would drag Saito into another dangerous situation. Siesta gave Saito a sleeping potion, so that he may be able to run away if Louise were to ask him to do anything dangerous. That same night, Saito ran off to confront an army of seventy-thousand soldiers himself, taking on a suicide mission that had been originally been assigned to the void mage, Louise de La Vallière. Siesta took the news pretty hard, but Louise, as Siesta realized, had taken it much harder.

Siesta was used to seeing her act with overconfidence and an excess of pride, a person who annoyed her and consistently bossed her around. They had never gotten along, but on some levels, Siesta held a grudging respect for Louise. When Saito hadn't returned, Louise was reduced to a shadow of her former self, it brought Siesta no joy to see her rival fall so hard, since she too was grieving. Seista had come into Louise's dorm room several times back then to check on her. Louise wouldn't get out of bed, and wouldn't eat. She shut herself off from the world and refused to participate in the act of living.

Siesta had found her one day, standing at the top of the tower overlooking Vestri court at the academy. Louise had convinced herself that Saito was dead, and that she needed to be where he was. Siesta had hope, however slim it was, that Saito was alive. She felt that Saito was alive, and that he'd be heartbroken if he came back and found that Louise had committed suicide. It wasn't just Saito's wellbeing she was worried about. Even though she didn't want to admit it, Siesta didn't want to see Louise die. That day, Siesta had grabbed Louise's leg just as she threw herself from the tower.

The end result of that is that Louise had survived her moment of stupidity, and Siesta watched as both Saito and Louise not only continued their relationship, but even got married. Siesta didn't think it was fair. Louise was cruel and sadistic, she treats Saito no better than a dog. Siesta, on the other hand was kind, gentle, and had a nice figure-everything that Louise seemed to lack. Saito, however, had fallen in love in with Louise. Even though Siesta didn't really want to admit it, even though Louise could be pointlessly cruel to him, Siesta knew that deep down inside, Louise loved him more than she was capable of.

Siesta sighed and drooped her shoulders, she was now in the awkward position of being near the man she loved, but unable to take hold of him. Up until now, she thought she was fine with being the 'runner up'. She'd accepted Louise as a rival and continued to pursue Saito, because as a woman she was equal, if not more formidable . . . but Saito was married now. Siesta thought about the question of morality, in pursuing another woman's husband. She couldn't believe that she found herself entertaining such thoughts, it went against everything she'd been taught growing up. For months now, Siesta had been reading and re-reading a book called "A Maid's Afternoon." It was about a maid who was coerced into having an affair with her master. Siesta's employer was Saito, and she couldn't help but draw parallels between her situation and that of the book. One major difference however, was that Saito would never dream of using Siesta that way. Part of her wished that he would. She had convictions and moral standards of her own, but couldn't deny what she felt.

Siesta was dusting off a grand piano sitting in the entertainment room, when she heard the doorbell ring. She walked over and opened the door. A handsome young man with blond hair and an open shirt, and a thin young woman stood outside. The girl's blond hair was ordained in a ribbon and rows of long curls, her small nose was dotted with freckles. The young man held a rose in one hand, which Siesta knew to be a wand. Siesta would think this boy to be charming, if she didn't know him better. Guiche De Gramont was a hopeless womanizer with the brains of a turnip and a lack of bravery to match. He was arrogant, and embodied much of what Siesta hated about nobles, but he was also a loyal friend to Saito, and despite his usual cowardice had even helped them all out in some particularly dangerous situations. Despite his glaring faults, Siesta considered him a trusted ally and warranted whatever hospitality that could be offered.

"Mr. Gramont! Miss Montmorency! What brings you both to De Orinelles? Mr. Saito is still visiting his parents!"

"Oh, is that right?" Guiche said. "I was really hoping to have a talk with him."

Guiche's eyes were noticeably drawn to Siesta's bust, prompting her to tactfully cross her arms across her chest. Montmorency hadn't failed to notice guiche's obvious staring either, she smacked him in the back of the head. Guiche's lecherous behavior didn't come as a surprise to Siesta. Most teenagers were easily excited. Saito was no exception to this, a fact Siesta often exploited. However, Guiche was on a whole different level. It was unfair to compare him to Saito. While Saito was merely weak to the visage of an attractive woman, Guiche actively flirted with them. Siesta was well aware of the fact that Louise was in a constant state of jealousy for what she perceived was infractions of fidelity on Saito's part, Siesta also knew that he was largely innocent. Nevertheless, she was guilty of occasionally getting Saito in trouble with Louise on purpose, just so she could be the hero to Louise's villainy.

Saito, despite no lack of temptation, had never sought any woman other than Louise. Guiche De Gramont was an entirely different matter, Siesta felt sorry for Montmorency, and couldn't understand why she was still with him despite all his flirting and skirt chasing.

"You've dragged me out here for nothing Guiche, what a waste of time! I have better things to do than traipsing around the country-side with you, you know!"

"B-but Montmorency! It's such a wonderful day, it'd be a shame if you didn't grace the sun with your beauty!"

Siesta didn't know what nauseated her more, the cheesy words that had come out of Guiche's mouth, or that Montmorency actually seemed swayed by them. "You know, they should be back by tomorrow. Miss Vallière is to start school soon, as you know. It'd be an honor should you stay the night here, it's a long journey and we have plenty of rooms"

Montmorency shrugged her shoulders. "Eh, might as well. Come along Guiche!" Montemorency dragged Guiche inside by his ear.

Siesta led the Through the hall, to a small, cozy sitting room, leaving them briefly, only to come back with sandwiches. "So, Mr. Gramont, Miss Montmorency," Siesta said, passing them both a sandwich. "what by chance might be the reason you've both decided to grace our humble abode?"

"Eh, humble, I see you your as humorous as you are beautiful, this is no shanty cottage my dear. Her highness is indeed most gracious. To tell you truthfully, I am envious of Saito. He was a commoner, yet has gained so much, his home even rivals that of the Gramonts! Oh, how I wish I was so favored by such beautiful queen, and to live with two such lovely young women!"

Siesta was unshaken by Guiche's flirtatious flattery, but Montmorency's eyebrow twitched, displaying her severe annoyance. "Why don't you just answer her question already, you dirty lecher!"

"How rude of me to prattle on like that. I think one needs not a reason to pay a dear friend a visit, but I must admit, I am here out of concern."

"What possibly could there to be concerned over, Mr. Gramont. I could assure you, things are quite well here, but I'm sure Mr. Saito will be pleased that you both were thinking of him."

"I overheard my father talking with some of the brass that report to the palace.," Guiche said. "It would seem there's been some talk of an emerging faction throughout Halkegina, the Sancti Servi. They aren't too fond of non-mages in positions of nobility."

"Eh? You don't think these people will try to come after Saito, do you?"

Montmorency chimed in. "They've been around for decades, but up until now, they've been a very minor presence in Halkegenia made up of a few nobles and strict followers of Brimir. I'm not really surprised that a commoner such as yourself hasn't heard of them.

"In any case, they're members have largely concerned themselves with matters of politics, and influencing policy in favor of strict adherence to the teachings of Brimir. I've heard some rumors, however, of some fairly cloak and dagger-type things going on behind the scenes. Lately they've been growing, changes within Halkeginia are giving way to dissent among the populace, even commoners are starting to join their ranks.

"Saito may very well have a target on his back, his becoming a noble was bound to anger jealous nobles, especially those who's status isn't quite as high as Saito. Even those who'd outrank him in status, would be displeased with his high reputation."

"We've always known this, Miss Montmorency.," Siesta said. "This is why her Majesty arranged that I be Saito's personal maid, rather than hiring a stranger, someone he couldn't trust."

"Besides," Guiche said. "this is Saito we speak of, the man who challenged and delayed seventy-thousand, the same man who defeated me, a noble in a duel! Who could possibly put him in danger?"

Montmorencey shook her head. "Guiche, your skills as a mage are a joke. You couldn't withstand an attack from my little sister, let alone a hardened battle mage!"

"I uh, well, I'm sure your little sister is quite formid-"

"She's ten."

"Well, never mind that, I've seen Saito and I have pulled ourselves out of some rather perilous situations in the past, and Louise is a void mage!"

"We both know that you wet your pants at the very mention of danger, besides that, Saito's nearly been killed more than once. I'm a firm believer in the power of luck, but it can only get a person so far. He can fight, that much I'll admit, but he's not invincible, and he's surely not immortal. Once more, if he doesn't hold a weapon his hand, then he's no different on the battlefield than any other commoner, perhaps even worse off!"

Yes, Louise is a void mage, that's not something you'd want the whole world to know. That girl has a heavy burden, too many people can and will exploit her power if they were to know about it. I'm afraid to think of how a group so obsessed with anything relating to Brimir, would react to find out that Louise is a descendant of Void! I'm worried, Guiche. If these people really decide to turn their attention towards Saito and Louise, they won't be the only one's in danger, but us as well."

Guiche gulped nervously.

"Well, Siesta said, for now the both of them are off in Saito's world. I'm told there are no dangers in that world, for now, they are safe."

"Well, lets forget that for now.," Guiche said. "You look quite tired, Siesta. You shouldn't worry yourself with such things, you'll get wrinkles. Have you slept?"

Now that she thought about it, Siesta was worn out herself, having been moving about since the crack of dawn. It was the middle of the day, and there were plenty of things that needed to be done, but she wouldn't be in any shape to finish anything if she was too tired to do it. "I think that would be wise."

Guiche looked at Montmorency with a devilish glint in his eye. "I think we should do the same, it has been a long journey, after all."

"Oh, well, I'll show you both to some of the extra bedrooms then." Siesta led them through the upstairs corridor in the west wing, which was entirely made up unused rooms. Siesta had kept each of the rooms clean and ready for any occasion that guests may be entertained at the mansion. Saito and Louise hadn't held any of the balls or parties that were customary of high-ranking nobles, but it was good to be prepared for it, just in case.

"Sleep Well Mr. Gramont, Mrs. Montmorency."

"Sleep well, Siesta."

Guiche tried to follow Montmorency into the same bedroom.

"What are you doing? They're are plenty of bedrooms, pick one, preferably not my own."

"But, I just thought . . ."

"Out!"

Siesta chuckled as she walked down the corridor, towards her own room. The two of them were a good pair, she thought. She, at first, felt sorry for Montmorency having to put up with Guiche's lecherous, skirt-chasing nature, but far more than other women seemed to be, Montmorency seemed to be equipped to handle it.

Siesta's thoughts suddenly shifted towards Louise, she wondered how that girl would take if, if she had to put up with someone like Guiche. Saito was prone to being easily distracted by pretty girls, Siesta had exploited this fact herself several times, but didn't display the same skirt-chasing behavior that Guiche did.

Saito had a habit of getting himself into situations that would look bad to onlookers, or being put into such situations, usually by Siesta, but was never one to seek out such attention from other girls. Siesta couldn't help but wonder how Louise, who was accustomed to throwing undeserved accusations towards Saito, would react if he really did start acting more like Guiche.

Siesta was sure she knew the answer to that, She did, after all, remember how Louise reacted to seeing Saito kiss Henrietta. It had been a mistake, If she'd caught Siesta doing that with Saito, Louise would have simply whipped them both, been pissed off for a week, and would have been done with it. Louise, however, mistook this as a sign that Henrietta and Saito had been having an affair, rather than a chance encounter.

Siesta found herself pitying Louise, but quickly dismissed the thoughts. Why should she feel empathy for the girl who kept Saito's heart? Rather than worry about the woes of that selfish noble, Siesta reminded herself that it was she who felt an unrequited love for the young man.

She was hopeless, her feelings were hopeless, but she couldn't help it. She imagined that she must look rather pathetic to others, pining over a man that was already married. Siesta, at times, thought it would be better to fall in love with someone else, to drop these hopeless feelings and move on, but she wasn't sure that this was possible. She couldn't imagine loving someone more than she loved Saito.

Instead of turning into her own room, Siesta veered to the right, towards Saito and Louise's bed chamber. The whole room was full of pink and purple, with little masculinity to speak of. It was obviously Louise who had done most, if not all the decorating, with little to no input from Saito.

Siesta plopped down on the bed and covered herself in layers of blankets. They smelled like Saito, actually they smelled like both Saito and Louise, but Siesta didn't particularly mind. She was alone, she wouldn't mind if they were both here, or even if Louise was the only person to keep her company.

Guiche's warning had her worried, but these were only potential dangers. Siesta reassured herself that Guiche was just being an over-protective friend. He himself was quite cowardly, and it wasn't hard to imagine that Guiche would blow things out of proportion, and see dangers in things of no real significance.

Saito and Louise were both in a place called, 'Tokyo', a place apparently free of war and the dangers that they often faced in this world. Furthermore, Saito was the Gandalfr, there was surely no human that could stand against him so long as Saito was armed.

It was then that Siesta looked above the fireplace, a shield hung above it, with two swords crossing over it. This was the only item in the room, that Siesta knew of, that had been placed there specifically by Saito. His former blade, the one that Derflinger was originally housed in was destroyed, so these rather cheap, mundane blades stood as Saito's only weapons.

Come to think of it, Saito had told her that it was unusual for people to walk around in his world with weapons, and that you never see anyone with a sword at all. It must have been for that reason, that Saito went into Tokyo completely unarmed.

* * *

- 0 -

* * *

Louise couldn't remember getting on the subway with Saito, she hadn't noticed when he led her to the station. The whole train was spinning, she could see the other passengers whirling around her as if it were a merry-go-round. They didn't have those in Halkeginia. Louise had only learned what a carnival or a merry-go-round was from watching the television in the Hiraga's living room. Louise would eventually persuade Saito to take her to the fair, but for now, the spinning was a problem, she was having trouble keeping her balance. She fell forward and caught Saito by the arm.

"Saito . . ."

"Yeah?"

"I want to get married!"

"We're already married, Louise."

"I knew that! Well, um . . . I want children!"

Louise smirked, as she saw Saito's eyes widen.

"Oh really, so how many kids do you want to have?" Saito scratched his head turned away from Louise. She could tell he was embarrassed.

"Uh . . two!" Louise held up two fingers as she said this. "I want a baby girl, annnd I want a baby boy!

"Hey Saito?"

"What is it?"

"I looove you!"

"Uh . . . I love you too, Louise."

Louise craned her neck and moved in closer to him."do you reeaally?" Louise's smile widened as Saito gulped nervously. She enjoyed seeing him flustered.

She slid from his grasp and wobbled towards a pole in the middle of the subway, miraculously catching her balance. She began to recklessly twirl around the pole, causing everything around her to become a blur. "Whee! hahaha!"

"Hey, watch out!" Saito ran over to her as she twirled around in circles, and caught her just as she came around.

"Hey there, heheh." Louise hung off of Saito and placed her hand on his cheek. Saito leaned in to kiss her, but she sprang out of his arms. "Hey, this is where we get off!" Louise immediately headed for the doors as they opened.

"Louise!, Louise!"

He sounded like he was worried, but Louise was in a rather playful mood and decided that she would toy with him a bit, make him chase her. Louise didn't know if it was because her body was smaller, or because people were less inclined to run over a girl, but she didn't seem to have much problem moving in and out of the crowd. She didn't actually want Saito to loose sight of her. She knew that her bright, pink hair would be easy to see in the crowd, she let it down and allowed the long locks to drape her backside.

Louise weaved in and out of the crowd, occasionally turn back and smiling at Saito, both to tease him, and to make sure he was still tailing her. She casually perched atop a stone handrail and waited for Saito to catch up to her. She smiled coyly at him with her legs crossed.

"What the hell Louise?!"

"Your yelling at me!"

"Of course I'm yelling, your acting like a child!"

"I thought you said you loved me!"

"What does that have to do with anything? You've been driving me insane!"

"Saito is stupid! I hate you!" Louise ran up the stairs. As she turned around the corner, she started to become more and more light-headed. She didn't remember what she was upset about just a minute ago, and she felt overwhelmingly tired. She couldn't tell what she had tripped over, but she hit the sidewalk before she even realized that she was falling. Her knee stung, she sat there against the wall and held her leg up so she could see how bad the wound was. Her stocking was ripped and matted with blood. It didn't look too serious, but it still hurt like hell. Looking over, she saw a slim boy with black hair and a blue shirt walking towards her. Her vision was blurry, but she could tell it was Saito.

Louise's head ached horribly and the bright sun offended her eyes as she opened them. Saito was carrying her. "What happened?" she said.

"You passed out at the end of the street, gave me quite a scare. You really shouldn't drink, you can't handle it. "

"A familiar shouldn't be lecturing his master." Louise was exhausted, and didn't feel like arguing with him. "Do you intend to carry me the whole way?"

"Your pretty light, shouldn't be a problem."

Louise was a little embarrassed about needing to be carried, but was thankful. She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged her head tightly against his chest. He wasn't a particularly muscular young man, but Louise figured that he was in better shape than most. Still, it was quite a ways to Saito's parents' house. Whether she was light or not, he would probably have a difficult time walking the whole way with her in his arms. "You know of any shortcuts?" Louise said.

"We'll go through the alleyways, it's not that far, really."

"It's not like I wanted you to carry me or anything!" Louise bit her lip."Why do you have to be so kind anyway?"

"I'm only doing what a familiar should do for his master."

"Is that the only reason?"

"Would there be any other?"

"Of course not!"

Delfringer, who had been silently watching the exchange the whole time, spoke from Saito's runes. "Eh, partner, not to interrupt your lover's qaurrel, but it looks like we have trouble ahead."

"Huh?"

Two guys blocked off the ally from one end. a third guy appeared and blocked that exit as well.

"Hey, that's a cute girl you got there, is she your girlfriend?" Altogether there was as tall skinny one, a short one, and a fat one prevented them from escaping. The tall skinny one seemed to be doing all the talking. "You look like a smart guy, so I'm going to cut you some slack, you just hand over your wallet and we'll let you guys go."

"Alright, alright! just give me a second." Saito gently set Louise down and grabbed his wallet and threw it on the ground in front of him.

"Hey, Saito! What the hell do you think your doing? We can take these jerks!" Louise took out her wand, which she had hidden, strapped to her thigh by a garter. She was prepared to cast a spell, but the wand slipped from her hands. Her her hands were bandaged up and concealed under her gloves, she would have even forgot she wore them if it weren't for the fact that they hindered her dexterity. She couldn't grip such a small object with as easily as she would normally. Louise chased after her wand as it rolled away underneath a large van. She got down on her hands an knees to crawl underneath it, which caused her burned hands a great deal of pain.

"Hey, you know what? That mouthy little lady Is really cute when you look at her up close, how about you go on somewhere and let me and her get to know each other?"

Louise turned and caught the tall, skinny one leering at her as she was on all fours. It was then she realized that her short skirt left her panties exposed. That pervert was staring and her hind end. Louise was about to give him a piece of her mind, but Saito beat her to it.

"You come near her, and I'll kill you." Saito looked as if he would lunge for the guy's throat at any second. The situation was escalating, a fight would be inevitable now. Saito was pretty good in a fight on his own merits, but Louise wasn't sure of that would be enough to take on three of these guys all at once. As gandalfr, he could take on scores of skilled warriors, but without a weapon in his hands, he was just an ordinary human being. Louise had to get that wand, and fast. She quickly dove underneath the large vehicle.

The ring-leader walked up to saito and stared the raging teenager down. "Hey, I think I know you, heheh I think we need to pay you back for our wasted efforts last time!"

Louise stopped reaching for the wand, distracted in her confusion "Huh? What the heck is he talking about?" She called out, still underneath the van.

"I ran into this sorry bunch back when you stranded me here."

"I had no choice! I thought you'd be killed!" Louise remembered it clearly. They were facing a fight against an ancient dragon. The odds were stacked against him, and Saito was thinking of using life-draining powers against it, that ran the risk of taking his life. Louise forced him back to his own world to save him, yet he'd apparently had an unfortunate run-in with these guys.

"Yeah, I remember you idiots, Larry, Curly, and Moe! You guys remind me of the three stooges."

"Say boss, I think he just insulted us." The fat one spoke.

"You think? Gee, you must be the brains of the bunch!" It was obvious that Saito was trying to rile these guys up.

Louise winced as she heard a loud thump as he skinny one caught Saito square in the jaw. Louise grabbed her wand and started to make her way out from under the van. Someone any bigger than Louise would find it impossible to move around much under there, Louise was having a hard time of it herself. Saito had no powers, he was going to be beaten to death if she didn't hurry. He ducked before the second one landed and swung upward with both arms interlocked. His opponent didn't see it coming and was immediately knocked to the ground.

Just as Louise rose to her feet, the fat guy smashed a two-by-four into Saito's back. He fell to his knees. . Just as he was trying to get up, the short guy ran up and kicked him in the face.

"Hey, what do you think your doing to my familiar!" Louise quickly waved her wand and caused a small explosion and knocked back their assailants. It was a simple spell, or non-spell. It was the result of what happened anytime Louise tried to use one of the ordinary elements; she blew stuff up.

"This chick's a witch!"

"Don't just stand there, go after her!"

The three stooges ignored Saito and suddenly Rushed Louise. She managed to knock two of the guys out with a second explosion, this time rendering them unconscious, but she missed their leader. He quickly held her down and restrained her hands. "That'll be enough of that little Missy!" he said.

An evil grin spread across the thug's face as he leered closer at Louise. His hot, steamy breath smelled horrible, it reminded Louise of the smell of rotten flesh. She turned her head away in disgust. Louise could see Saito laying on the ground, he wasn't moving.

"Saito, help me!"

"Your boyfriend can't save you, little Missy. I think he may be dead."

"No . . ."

Louise tried to wriggle out of the creep's grip, but her body was small, and he bore his weight down on her. She looked over at Saito, he still wasn't moving. She couldn't tell whether or not he was breathing.

"Saito!"

"You don't got a very large chest, but your cute enough, how about we get to know each other?"

"Wait, wha-"

The creep started to pull at the strings of Louise's corset.

"Stop it! Let go of me you bastard!" Louise wriggled her hands free and started beating the man in the face with her fists.

"Cut it out you little brat!" The grabbed both of Louise's arms and threw her against the pavement. He held her arms with one hand, and tried to rip her bodice with the other. Louise tried to break free, but he was too strong.

Louise squirmed violently. She didn't want him to touch her, she desperately wanted Saito to save her, but she didn't even know if he was alive. Louise began to cry loudly. "Saito!" With tears flowing down her face, she cried out Saito's name again. It was hopeless. Saito couldn't save her, she couldn't control what was happening. The man's grotesque leer infuriated her, she squirmed wildly, refusing to give up.

"GET OFF ME YOU DIRTY BASTARD!"

Thwack!

The man stopped struggling with Louise, and his eyes rolled to the back of his head as he slumped over. Saito exploded into a ball of rage and began pummeling the thug. Saito's opponent was reduced to a bloodied heap, barely conscious and writhing in pain.

"Get the hell off my wife!"

"Saito! Your alive!"

"Of course I'm alive." He rubbed his back and slumped over. "Though I feel like I shouldn't be, that guy really did a number on me." He slowly made his way over to Louise, who was in far better shape than he was, and leaned his back against the wall.

"You look awful! We need to get you to a water mage!"

Saito's cheek and eye were swollen on the left side of his face, and two streams of dried blood ran down his face. "Louise, there aren't any water mages in this world. Don't worry, I'm fine."

"Well, you look gross."

"Thanks."

"So ho about that hangover, you sure your okay to be moving around so much?"

"Shut up, it's not like your able to carry me any more. I'm fine, but you . . ."

Louise' energy was drained, she still harbored a massive headache, but she managed to walk towards the end of the ally with them both leaning into one another. She felt a little guilty, aside from her bruised knee and aftereffects of drinking too much wine, she was mostly fine. She hadn't received any injuries in the fight because Saito took on all the abuse himself. Even without his gandalfr powers, he was still protecting her.

As they neared the end of the ally, Louise could hear the three stooges groaning behind them. Most normal people would run after being attacked by a mage, but these guys were a special kind of stupid, the kind that caused flies to continue running into a glass window, or to land in the same spot after repetitive swats. "Hey! You little brat! Get back here!"

Louise and Saito tried to move faster, but neither one of them was in any condition to run. She could hear their footsteps echo louder and louder through the alleyways until she was sure they had caught up to them. Finally Louise had enough, she stopped and turned towards her pursuers with a cold, determined stare.

The trio stopped. All three of them looked at each other with confounded expressions. The skinny one laughed and began casually walking towards Louise. "Who do you think you are little Missy? Aren't you scared? Your little tricks, or whatever that was, won't save you!"

"I am Louise Françoise Le Blanc de Hiraga de Ornielle, daughter to Duke de La Vallière and second in line for the throne of Tristainia, and I will have you show my familiar and I some respect!" Louise punctuated her declaration with a flash from her wand. With Saito behind her, she was able to release the full extent of her fury. A blast of energy knocked the assailants down and surged through the ally, stripping the bricks from the walls in a rolling cascade.

The effects of the blast were more than what Louise had anticipated. When the smoke and dust cleared, the three stooges were gone, buried under a massive pile of brick and dust. The sides of both buildings had been obliterated, and she could see that while one was vacant, the other was apparently a storefront of some kind that had been open for business.

Customers that had been rummaging through clothes racks and a clerk sitting behind the counter were all covered in dust and motionless, as if time had suddenly stopped.

"Eh . . . sorry about that, is anyone hurt in there?" Louise scratched her head and smiled nervously. The clerk behind the counter didn't say anything, simply shaking her head slowly.

"That's great," Louise stuttered as she spoke, "well, uh, I suppose we'll be leaving now. Bye!"

* * *

_Well, that's the end of the chapter, obviously. If you have any thoughts about the chapter, the way it was written, things that could have been done better, feel free to share them._


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